€' 


PRINCETON,  N.  J.  '^' 


BX  9T78  .B663  M6  1882 
Boardman,  Henry  A.  1808- 

1880. 
Mottoes  for  the  New  Year 


Shelf.... 


r 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR, 


AS  GIVEN  IN  TEXTS   OF  SERMONS 


PRKACHED  IN   THK 


TENTH  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH, 


PHILADELPHIA. 


BY 

HENRY  A.  BOARDMAN,  D.D. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

E.   CLAXTON   AI^D   COMPAI^Y, 

No.  930  Market  Street. 

1882. 


COLLINS,  PRINTER. 


PHIHG 

\ 

This  volume  of  Sermons  for  the  New  Year  is  offered  to 
the  people  of  Dr.  Henry  A.  Boardman's  charge  with  certain 
anticipation  of  its  welcome.  During  his  long  ministry  they 
often  desired  the  publication  of  such  of  his  addresses  as  had 
been  particularly  instructive  and  acceptable,  and  to  this  din- 
position  to  preserve  what  is  of  special  intrinsic  value  is  now 
added  the  influence  of  their  reverent  and  regretful  recollec- 
tion. These  Sermons  were  respectively  greeted  with  marked 
interest  as  the  period  for  them  arrived,  and  Dr.  Boardman 
was  repeatedly  asked  to  publish  them.  But  the  time  never 
came  when  he  could  comply  with  this  wish  of  several  of  his 
friends,  and  give  to  his  people  a  course  of  sermons  extend- 
ing over  a  period  of  fifteen  years,  and  of  a  character  to  renew 
in  each  coming  year  its  rich  offering  of  pertinent  suggestion 
and  comforting  assurance. 

The  general  oneness  of  the  subjects  here  pi'oposed,  and 
the  character  of  the  texts,  brief,  simple,  practical,  have  lim- 
ited to  some  extent  the  preacher's  varied  power,  and  induced, 
though  moderately,  a  repetition  of  sentiment  and  method 
which  in  a  more  miscellaneous  series  could  not  occur.  Yet, 
among  these  discourses  there  are  several  which  may  fairly 
take  rank  with  others  that,  prepared  for  extraordinary 
occasions,  or  discussing  some  favorite  topic,  were  looke<l 
upon  as  models  of  treatment,  and  in  their  various  published 
forms  will  remain  precious  and  permanent  possessions  to 
Dr.  Boardman's  friends,  his  people,  and  the  Church. 

(Hi) 


IV 


To  a  wider  Cliristian  and  literary  public  these  Sermons 
can  be  commended  with  almost  equal  confidence.  They  are 
the  utterances  of  a  man  whose  name  and  opinions  are  not 
now  for  the  first  time  before  the  reading  world,  awaiting 
doubtfully  its  award.  Long  ago  his  reputation  as  a  writer, 
a  speaker,  a  Christian  teacher,  was  fully  established,  and  on 
some  questions  his  judgment  had  come  to  be  considered,  in 
more  than  one  large  circle,  as  substantially  ultimate.  His 
statements  and  arguments  went  forth  with  authority,  accred- 
ited always,  whether  altogether  accepted  or  not,  as  the  result 
of  sound  mental  processes,  and  of  rarely  cautious  and  candid 
investigation.  The  quality  of  his  expression  was  thought 
by  competent  and  impartial  critics  to  bear  ready  comparison 
with  that  of  any  writer  of  the  day  in  our  country.  So  de- 
cided was  his  intellectual  ability,  so  generous  was  his  cul- 
ture, so  accurate  was  his  habit,  so  delicate  his  discrimina- 
tion, that  he  could  not  but  deal  as  a  master  with  any  subject 
that  came  within  his  range,  nor  fail  to  attain  in  his  own 
department  to  the  high  distinction  of  a  faithful  interpreter 
and  zealous  guardian  of  Scriptural  truth. 

But,  more  than  this :  the  facts  and  teachings  of  the  word 
of  God  were  accepted  by  Dr.  Boardman  with  an  entireness 
and  energy  of  assent,  with  a  freshness  of  individual  percep- 
tion, and  with  an  immediate  infiuence  on  the  inner  man,  that 
eminently  qualified  him  to  speak  as  a  messenger  of  the  Gospel 
of  Jesus  Christ.  It  was  the  grace  of  God  in  his  heart,  and 
that  Divine  fulness,  wherever  it  is  received,  will  press  itself 
forth  in  free  and  beneficent  overflow.  There  must  be,  then, 
a  bountiful  supply  in  these  Sermons  for  the  many  in  every 
Christian  denomination  who  are  always  eager  to  draw  counsel 
and  consolation  from  Gospel  sources:    and,  surely,  a  candid 


hearing  will  again  be  given  to  words  so  solemn  in  their 
import,  so  discerning  of  men's  spiritnal  needs,  so  faithful, 
so  kmdly,  so  persuasive, — words  that  truly  indicate,  as  they 
earnestly  recommend,  a  large  Christian  attainment  and  a 
complete  self-surrender  to  the  Redeemer  and  his  cause. 

WHiatever  expectation  as  to  the  local  and  general  accept- 
ance of  this  tribute  to  his  memory,  our  estimate  of  Dr. 
Boardman's  character  and  services  may  lead  us  to  form,  we 
bear  in  mind  that  his  controlling  desire  in  publishing,  as  in 
preaching,  was  to  proclaim  as  widely,  and  in  as  many  of  its 
gracious  aspects,  as  he  might,  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God.  May  the  Holy  Spirit  incline  each  reader  to 
give  to  these  maxim  truths  their  rightful  place  in  the  system 
of  his  faith,  and  to  acknowledge  their  Divine  authority  in 
the  daily  conduct  of  his  life ! 

S. 

December,  1881. 


CONTENTS. 


[.  GOD  IS  MINE  IIELPKR.     Psalm  liv.  4 9 

II.  THE  LORD  IS  AT  HAND.     Philippians  iv.  5,        .         .         .         .27 

III.  "I  WILL  REJOICE  IN  THE  LORD."     IIabakkuk  hi.  18,     .         .       4:! 

IV.  "THIS  IS  MY  FRIEND."    Song  of  Solomon  v.  Ifi,        .        .        .61 
V.  "FOR  TO  ME  TO  LIVE  IS  CHRIST."     Philippians  i.  2!,    .         .       T'J 

VI.  "  WAITING  FOR  THE  COMING  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST." 


1   Corinthians  i.  7, 


95 


VII.  "APPROVED  UNTO  GOD."     2  Timothy  ii.  15,         .         .         .         .  IK^ 

VIII.  "TO  EVERY  MAN  HIS  WORK."     Mark  xin.  34,           ...  135 

IX.     "THIS  IS  NOT  YOUR  REST."     Micah  ii.  ID 155 

X.  "MY  GRACE  IS  SUFFICIENT  FOR  THEE."    2  Corinthia.ns  xii,  9,  175 

XI.    "I  AM  WITH  THEE."     Isaiah  xli.  10, 193 

XII.     "  A  LITTLE  WHILE."     John  xvi.  16, 211 

XIII.  "THE    LORD     WILL    GIVE     GRACE     AND    GLORY." 

Psalm  lxxxiv.  11,        .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  233 

XIV.  "WHOSE  I  AM.  AND  WHOM  I  SERVE."     Acts  xxvii.  23,  .         .  253 


T' H  Xi  u  jLt  U  (i  I C 


I. 

GOD  IS  MINE  HELPER. 

PSALM  Liv.  4. 


Since  we  last  met  in  this  place,  we  have  interchanged 
the  customary  social  congratulations  on  the  advent  of  a 
New  Year.  AVe  are  here  to  recognize  this  event  in  a 
more  formal  manner,  and  in  some  of  its  more  impor- 
tant aspects.  The  anniversary  is  one  which  is  sure  to 
commingle  in  its  observance  our  hopes  and  our  regrets. 
The  sorrows  and  the  sins  of  the  year  that  is  gone  are 
but  too  certain  to  come  thronging  around  us,  while,  with 
equal  certainty,  our  aspirations  will  go  forth  in  quest  of 
something  purer  and  better  in  the  future.  Each  succes- 
sive year  admonishes  us  afresh  how  absolute  is  our  igno- 
rance of  the  future.  '  Thou  knowest  not  what  shall  be 
on  the  morrow.'  Much  less  canst  thou  forecast  the 
changes  which  may  be  evolved  before  we,  or  others  in 
our  place,  shall  meet  here  on  another  New  Year's  Sab- 
bath. 

But  one  thing  we  do  know  : — If  God  be  for  us,  we  have 
nothing  to  fear  from  those  who  may  be  against  us.  In 
this  view,  I  propose  with  all  respect  and  affection,  to  give 
you  something  to  think  of  during  the  coming  twelve- 


10  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

month.  You  may  call  it,  if  you  will,  your  Year-text.,  or 
your  Motto  for  the  Year.  Perhaps  there  is  many  a  scene 
and  event  before  you  in  which  it  will  comfort  you  to  re- 
call the  words,  "  God  is  mine  helper."  It  was  this  reflec- 
tion which  cheered  the  heart  of  David  when  pursued  by 
his  enemies,  and  in  peril  of  his  life.  It  may  solace  and 
strengthen  you  also  in  time  of  trouble. 

This,  however,  is  but  a  very  partial  view  of  the  use  I 
would  have  you  make  of  this  Scripture.  You  all  imder- 
stand  the  design  of  a  motto.  The  one  I  venture  to  sug- 
gest to  you  will  be  found  as  comprehensive  as,  to  every 
Christian  heart,  it  must  be  animating. 

'God  is  mine  Helper.'  I  can  conceive  of  no  equip- 
ment better  than  this  for  launching  forth  upon  the  path- 
less expanse  of  a  new  year.  The  forty-sixth  Psalm  has 
long  gone  in  the  Church  by  the  name  of  Luther's 
Psalm,  because  the  great  Reformer  was  accustomed  to 
repair  to  it  for  succor  in  all  emergencies: — 'God  is  our 
refuge  and  strength,  a  very  present  help  in  trouble.' 
Not  less  cheering  will  you  find  the  assurance,  'God  is 
mine  Helper.' 

I  have  characterized  it  as  '  comprehensive.'  So  varied 
are  the  occasions  upon  which  it  may  be  invoked,  and  so 
numerous  the  ends  to  which  it  can  fairly  be  applied, 
that  I  should  exhaust  your  patience  by  attempting  any- 
thing like  a  complete  discussion  of  the  subject.  All 
you  will  expect  or  desire  of  me  is  some  passing  illustra- 
tions of  the  use  to  be  made  of  this  promise  in  the  ordi- 
nary experiences  of  life. 

The  offer  of  'help'  directs  the  mind  intuitively  to 
our  need  of  help,  and  the  proper  answer  to  the  inquiry, 
'When    do  we   require   helpf   is,    'When    do  we  not 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \\ 

require  \tV  Sini'ul,  wayward,  and  siifFering  creatures, 
our  necessities  are  as  continued  as  the  moments  of  our 
lives.  Our  Saviour  spoke  without  a  figure  when  he 
said,  'Without  me  ye  can  do  nothing.'  In  all  our  duties, 
all  our  trials,  all  our  temptations,  all  our  pleasures,  we 
need  help  from  above.  If  there  are  any  who  think 
otherwise,  this  fact  itself  only  shows  how  great  their  real 
need  is. 

With  every  thoughtful  person  this  season  is  sure  to 
awaken  reflections  on  the  proper  ends  of  life,  and  the 
manner  in  which  we  arc  fulfilling  them.  It  is  well,  at 
the  opening  of  a  year,  to  endeavor  to  frame  a  just  esti- 
mate of  our  own  powers  and  opportunities,  and  of  the 
objects  for  which  we  are  living.  How  common  and  how 
disastrous  it  is  to  err  on  these  points,  appears  to  every 
one  who  casts  an  eye  over  society.  Everywhere  we  see 
a  sad  inversion  of  things, — the  higher  interests  subordi- 
nated to  the  inferior,  time  made  paramount  to  eternity, 
and  earth  to  heaven.  Even  with  ourselves,  very  much 
of  life  may  have  been  a  mistake.  And  where  its  aims 
have  been  right,  they  have  too  often  been  pursued  with 
languor  and  inconstancy.  How  little  have  we,  any  of 
us,  to  shew  for  life,  as  compared  with  what  we  should 
have !  How  meagre  the  results  of  our  twenty,  thirty, 
fifty  years ! 

Perhaps  we  have  been  at  fault  in  our  plans ;  or,  we 
have  misjudged  our  own  capacities  and  responsibilities; 
or  we  have  disparaged  the  aids  proffered  us  by  our 
Heavenly  Father.  If  there  is  any  disposition  to  revise 
the  scheme  of  life,  and  to  get  a  new  and  juster  view  of  it, 
you  need  not  lack  for  an  infallible  Teacher.  '  God  is  mine 
Helper.'     This  will  meet  your  case.     For  the  help  He 


12  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

affords  is  not  confined  to  the  exigencies  of  outward  duty 
or  suffering.  It  is  his  prerogative,  no  less,  to  iUuminate 
the  understanding  and  to  control  the  working  of  all  our 
intellectual  forces. 

And  herein,  by  the  way,  we  are  reminded  of  one  of 
the  most  interesting  of  the  methods  in  which  He  is  wont 
to  vindicate  the  implied  promise  of  the  text.  There  is 
no  pursuit  in  which  we  more  imperatively  require  his 
aid  than  in  the  search  after  truth,.  This  is  an  employ- 
ment worthy  of  our  rational  nature.  For  truth,  like  its 
Author,  is  immutable.  It  is  the  prescribed  aliment  of 
the  soul, — that  by  which  it  must  be  nourished  and  ex- 
panded, and  which  can  never  cease  to  be  its  portion  and 
its  life.  But  it  does  not  obtrude  itself  upon  the  inert 
and  the  careless.  Even  in  a  sinless  realm,  the  acquisi- 
tion of  truth  no  doubt  requires  exertion.  And  to  us  it 
is  like  treasure  liid  in  a  field.  Especially  is  this  the  case 
as  regards  religious  truth.  Here,  there  is  a  veil  upon 
our  minds  which  no  human  hand  can  lift.  And  then 
the  difficulties  are  largely  increased  by  the  variety  of 
creeds  and  sects,  and  the  conflicting  interpretations  put 
upon  the  sacred  oracles.  No  one  who  considers  these 
things  can  refuse  his  sympathy  to  those  who  are  rever- 
ently and  patiently  asking,  'What  is  truth]' 

It  is  quite  certain  that  this  search  after  truth  will 
engage,  in  the  course  of  the  present  year,  the  attention 
of  many  who  are  now  before  me.  You  will  be  seeking 
after  the  way  to  the  cross;  or  you  will  be  striving  after 
a  clearer  insight  into  the  doctrines  of  grace ;  or  you  will 
be  bringing  opinions  you  have  long  held  to  the  touch- 
stone of  the  law  and  the  testimony.  And,  whatever 
direction  your  inquiries  may  take,  you  will  not  Hiil  to 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  13 

draw  encouragement  from  the  assurance,  'God  is  mine 
Helper.' 

He  is  the  Helper  of  all  who  seek  in  sincerity  to  learn 
his  will.  He  has  promised  to  be  their  Teacher.  It  is 
one  of  the  express  offices  of  his  Spirit,  to  guide  us  into 
the  truth.  Let  this  dwell  upon  your  minds  whenever, 
as  this  year  passes  on,  you  sit  down  to  the  study  of  the 
Bible,  or  when  you  listen  to  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel. 
The  passages  from  which  you  can  extract  no  satisfactory 
meaning  will  become,  under  the  Spirit's  teaching,  as 
lucid  as  the  sunbeam ;  and  the  doctrines  which  embar- 
rass or  distress  you,  will  be  found  not  only  Scriptural 
but  comforting.  Thus  instructed,  you  will  grow  in  the 
knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ.  Your  faith  will  rest  upon 
broader  foundations;  and,  with  a  more  comprehensive 
view  of  the  perfections  and  government  of  God,  you  will 
have  enlarged  your  sources  of  pure  and  elevated  enjoy- 
ment. 

We  may  pass  beyond  the  sphere  of  religious  inquiries. 
While  there  is  a  special  significance  with  which  we  may 
say,  in  prosecuting  the^se  studies,  '  God  is  mine  Helper,' 
we  need  not,  and  should  not,  exclude  his  agency  from 
studies  of  a  less  spiritual  character.  You  have  devoted 
yourselves,  it  may  be,  to  the  cause  of  Science.  To  what- 
ever point  in  this  wide  domain  you  may  have  directed 
your  attention,  it  would  ill  become  you  to  decline  the 
aid  of  the  "  Spirit  of  truth."  Genuine  philosophy  is  the 
handmaid  of  genuine  piety.  With  equal  capacities  and 
opportunities,  they  will  ordinarily  be  most  successful  in 
their  researches  who  pursue  them  in  a  spirit  of  reverence  • 
and  gratitude  towards  the  Supreme  Being.  He  rewards 
the  devout  student  of  nature,  as  He  does  the  devout 


14  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

student  of  his  word,  with  discoveries  which  are  con- 
cealed from  the  eyes  of  the  self-complacent  and  the  pro- 
fane. The  Geologist  who  traces  in  the  vegetation  of 
the  rocks  the  memorials  of  the  Creator's  wisdom ;  the 
Botanist  who  sees  in  every  bud  and  blossom  the  image 
of  Ilim  who  has  made  the  lilies  of  the  field  a  sweet 
remembrancer  of  their  Lord  ;  the  Astronomer  who  walks 
among  the  glories  of  the  firmament  only  to  adore  the 
brighter  glories  of  Him  who  set  the  stars  in  their  courses 
and  calls  them  by  their  names ; — all  these  may  fitly  say, 
'  God  is  mine  Helper.' 

Nor  these  alone.  There  can  be  no  better  motto  for 
the  Professional  man  than  this.  The  grand  aim  of  the 
liberal  professions,  like  the  ultimate  end  of  all  Science, 
is  truth.  And  here  also  Truth  hides  herself,  and  must 
be  sought  out  with  arduous  and  patient  toil.  The  in- 
tricacies of  the  Law,  for  example,  are  proverbial.  The 
service  laid  upon  the  Bar,  involves  the  interpretation  of 
abstruse  and  ambiguous  statutes,  the  examination  of  re- 
luctant or  reckless  witnesses,  the  parrying  of  adverse 
arguments,  the  harmonizing  or  annulling  of  precedents, 
the  application  of  settled  principles  to  facts,  and,  gener- 
ally, a  course  of  procedure  in  which  there  is  ample  room, 
as  well  for  the  loftiest  exertion  of  intellect,  as  for  the 
play  of  those  fervid  passions  and  sympathies  which 
constitute  so  essential  and  intractable  a  part  of  our 
being.  Through  all  this  complexity  of  influences  the 
lawyer  must  make  his  way,  not  in  quest  of  truth  as  a 
metaphysical  abstraction,  but  in  quest  of  Truth  as  the 
sponsor  of  invaluable  personal  rights,  as  the  guardian  of 
men's  property  or  liberty,  or,  possibly,  of  life  itself  No 
man  can  hope  to   compass  the  just  demands   of   this 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  15 

noble  profession  without  exhausting  labor.  But  even 
this  needs  to  be  reinforced  from  without.  And  with 
every  Christian  lawyer — Christian,  not  in  name  and  form 
merely,  but  in  heart  and  life — there  is  the  unfailing  sup- 
port which  is  bound  up  in  the  feeling,  'God  is  mine 
Helper.' 

Is  there  any  reason  why  this  feeling  should  not  be 
carried  into  all  the  activities  and  conflicts  of  the  forum "? 
The  promise,  '  I  will  help  thee,'  is  not  limited  to  sacred 
times  and  places,  and  to  the  offices  of  religion.  The 
same  Providence  directs  as  well  our  secular  as  our  spir- 
itual affairs.  If  whether  we  eat  or  drink,  or  whatever 
we  do,  we  are  to  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God,  then  must 
we  be  warranted  to  look  for  his  assistance  in  every  law- 
ful occupation  and  in  every  scene  of  duty.  It  is  one  of 
the  bright  anticipations  we  associate  with  the  coming 
millennium,  that  all  professions  will  then  be  conducted  on 
the  higli  principles  of  Scripture  morality,  and  pervaded 
with  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel.  When  "  Holiness  to  the 
Lcn-d  "  comes  to  be  inscribed  upon  the  bells  of  the  horses, 
Christianity  will  no  longer  be  denied  its  rightful  place 
in  the  social  structure.  It  is  cause  for  congratulation 
that  its  claims  are  now  acknowledged  by  so  many  wliose 
abilities  adorn  the  walks  of  jurisprudence.  In  their 
loyalty  to  Christ  they  are  consulting  their  own  good, 
professional  as  well  as  spiritual.  For  the  promise  is, 
'Them  that  honor  me,  I  will  honor.'  On  the  ground  of 
success  in  life,  a  young  lawyer  would  do  well  to  plant 
himself  upon  the  deep  foundations  of  Christianity.  But 
there  are  loftier  motives  by  far  which  should  prompt  to 
this  course;    and   those   who   adopt   it  will   know  the 


IG  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

strength  and  the  comfort  to  be  drawn  from  that  scrip- 
ture, 'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

If  the  Jurist  requires  this,  how  much  more  the  Physi- 
cian. With  him,  the  stake  is  not  property  nor  Uberty, 
but  Hfe.  The  enemy  he  has  to  cope  with  is  subtle  and 
insidious ;  entrenched,  often,  in  the  hiding-places  of  the 
system,  and  skilful  in  masking  his  true  character.  We 
need  not  disguise  the  fact: — while  Medicine  justly  claims 
its  position  as  a  science,  there  must  still  be  very  much  in 
the  application  of  it  which  can  only  be  referred  to  con- 
jecture and  experiment.  This  is  no  disparagement  of 
the  Profession.  Man  cannot  achieve  impossibilities,  and 
the  age  of  miracles  is  past.  We  accept  the  Science  as 
it  is,  and  recognize  in  it  one  of  the  greatest  of  our  tem- 
poral blessings.  We  note  with  gratitude  the  signal  pro- 
gress it  is  making.  But  we  are  daily  reminded  that  it 
is  overmastered  even  by  familiar  diseases.  And  when 
we  see  a  physician  grappling  with  maladies  on  the  issue 
of  which  precious  lives  are  suspended,  and,  with  them, 
the  happiness  and  hopes  of  a  wide  circle  of  friends  and 
kindred,  we  feel  that  if  there  be  any  earthly  mission  in 
which  men  need  help  from  heaven,  it  is  this.  It  cannot 
be  deemed  surprising,  in  this  view,  that  families  should 
so  often  desire  the  ministrations  of  a  Christian  physician. 
It  is  not  merely  that  they  confide  in  the  integrity  which 
has  religion  for  its  basis,  and  understand  that  personal 
piety  is  the  nurse  of  delicacy  and  sympathy,  but  that 
the  conviction  forms  and  strengthens  that  such  a  physi- 
cian carries  the  blessing  of  God  with  him. 

We  cannot  err  in  supposing,  that  he  himself,  as  he 
pursues  his  daily  rounds  among  the  sick  and  the  dying. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  17 

must  appreciate,  as  few  other  men  can,  the  assurance, 
'God  is  mine  Helper,'  Let  the  young  men  who  have 
devoted  themselves  to  Medicine  think  of  this.  On  a 
strictly  professional  view  of  the  subject,  nothing  could 
more  enhance  the  A'alue  of  your  attainments,  or  better 
aid  you  in  making  a  successful  use  of  them,  than  a  per- 
sonal faith  in  Jesus  Christ.  It  will  be  a  rare  element  of 
professional  power,  if,  when  you  have  entered  upon  your 
work,  you  shall  be  able  to  say,  day  after  day,  as  you  go 
forth  to  the  abodes  of  disease  and  suffering,  'God  is 
mine  Helper.'  And  when  you  superadd  the  considera- 
tions proper  to  your  individual  accountability,  and  the 
obligations  which  lie  upon  you,  as  upon  each  one  of  us, 
to  do  all  that  can  be  done  for  the  Church  of  Christ  and 
the  good  of  mankind,  how  can  you  think  of  ever  engag- 
ing in  the  practice  of  this  most  beneficent  profession 
without  first  consecrating  yourself  to  the  service  of  God  1 
As  I  look  over  this  congregation  my  sympathies  are 
enlisted,  as  they  have  long  been,  in  behalf  of  the  Men 
of  Business  here.  It  were  superfluous  to  talk  to  you  of 
the  hazards  and  vexations  which  are  bound  up  in  a  busi- 
ness life.  You  know  more  about  them  than  I  could  tell 
you.  And  the  present  season  is  one,  above  all  others, 
to  enforce  the  lesson  with  which  I  come  to  you  to-day. 
It  is  while  the  remembrance  of  these  great  disasters  is 
fresh  upon  your  minds  that  I  would  remind  you  of  the 
only  Source  from  which  you  can  ever  derive  help  com- 
mensurate with  your  necessities.  Calamities  which  over- 
whelm men,  which  break  up  their  plans,  and  disperse 
their  fortunes,  occur  only  at  intervals.  But  all  along  the 
thoroughfares  of  business,  there  are  temptations  and  dis- 


18  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

comforts  which  try  the  temper  and,  sometimes,  imperil 
the  soul:  It  must  happen  very  often  in  the  course  of  a 
year  that  when  you  return  to  your  homes  at  evening 
your  retrospect  of  the  day  will  include  some  passage  of 
an  irksome  or  painful  character — some  provocation  given 
or  taken,  some  injury  inflicted  or  received,  or  something 
which  you  would  gladly  efface  from  the  record. 

Now  it  were  fanciful  to  imagine  that  there  is  any  in- 
fallihle  method  by  which  all  experiences  of  this  sort  can 
be  avoided.  They  inhere  more  or  less  in  the  kind  of  life 
you  are  leading.  But  what  cannot  be  cured,  may  at 
least  be  mitigated.  I  do  not  say,  that  the  text  is  a  talis- 
man which  will  carry  you  harmless  through  all  temp- 
tations and  perplexities.  But  if  you  could  only  have 
the  sentiment,  'God  is  mine  Helper'  deeply  enshrined 
in  your  hearts  and  guarded  by  a  firm  faith,  it  will  cer- 
tainly enable  you  to  go  on  your  way  with  a  steadier 
step,  and  to  lift  your  eyes  in  surrounding  darkness  to  the 
true  Light  which  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into 
the  world. 

Suppose  you  take  it  with  you  to  your  counting-rooms, 
your  factories,  and  your  workshops,  morning  by  morning, 
and  see  whether  there  is  not  in  it  virtue  to  purify  the 
atmosphere  you  breathe  through  the  day.  Two  great 
ideas  it  embosoms,  God,  and  Help.  It  must  be  useful 
to  have  these  before  the  mind  anywhere.  If  the  thought 
of  God  were  more  familiar  in  the  realm  of  trade,  it 
would  be  auspicious  for  the  eager  crowd  who  jostle  each 
other  in  its  avenues.  The  mistake  lies  in  excluding  the 
Deity  from  this  realm;  in  assigning  religion  to  its  place, 
and  traffic  to  its  place,  and  keeping  up  an  unscriptural 
and  vicious  divorce  between  them.     Surely  you  cannot 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  19 

dispense  with  Christianity  in  your  business.  You  need  its 
principles,  you  need  its  counsels,  you  need  its  comforts. 
It  can  aid  you  as  no  earthly  power  can.  Accept  the  succor 
it  tenders  you,  and  carry  it  with  you  as  ^vade  meciim^ 
your  inseparable  guide  and  support  through  the  year — 
'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

And  what  better  maxim  can  be  proposed  for  the  se- 
cluded world  of  Home'?  The  cares,  the  trials,  the  joys, 
the  temptations,  the  anxieties,  the  pleasures  of  House- 
hold life — what  pencil  can  delineate  this  variegated 
scene,  with  its  ever-shifting  lights  and  shadows'?  And 
who  does  not  feel  his  own  incompetency  to  deal  with  its 
responsibilities'?  Next  to  keeping  one's  own  heart,  there 
is  scarcely  anything  harder  to  do  than  to  bring  up  a 
family  of  children  aright.  '  Aright,'  I  say;  for,  of  course, 
they  are  brought  up  in  some  way.  But  how  this  duty 
is  too  commonly  performed,  it  needs  but  a  glance  around 
us  to  show.  The  difficulties  attending  it  demand  an 
amount  of  wisdom  and  patience,  of  love  and  firmness, 
which  only  a  few  parents  possess.  And  even  these  are 
frequently  baffled  by  questions  unexpectedly  evolved  out 
of  even  ordinary  and  daily  family  life,  or  lost  sight  of  in 
sudden  shadows  which  envelop  the  household  in  gloom. 

That  any  parent  can  be  willing  to  bear  such  a  burden 
without  the  aid  of  religion  may  well  awaken  surprise. 
Even  a  true  faith  may  not  be  equal  to  all  the  emergen- 
cies of  this  relation.  But  there  is  certainly  no  other  re- 
source which  offers  so  much  assistance,  and  supplies  so 
much  encouragement,  as  the  presence  and  blessing  of 
God.  I  will  not  say  to  you.  Hang  up  this  precious 
Scripture  in  your  parlors,  in  your  bed-chambers,  in  your 
libraries.     But  I  will  say  to  you,  Grave   it   upon  the 


20  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

palms  of  your  hands,  and  upon  the  tablets  of  your  hearts, 
'  God  is  mine  Helper.'  Bear  it  with  you  into  the  familiar 
scenes  of  every-day  life.  Have  it  within  reach  every 
moment.  This  year  will  bring  with  it  occasions  when 
you  will  feel  your  need  of  it.  It  may  evoke  many  an 
ejaculatory  prayer  to  the  Giver  of  all  good,  keep  you 
from  many  an  error  in  judgment,  repress  many  an  un- 
seemly ebullition  of  temper,  and  carry  you  safely  through 
many  a  scene  of  perplexity.  Be  it  your  household  motto, 
'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

It  has  already  been  intimated  that  this  exclamation 
broke  from  David's  lips,  when  he  was  in  peril  of  his  life. 
The  most  obvious  association  it  suggests,  is  that  of  trouble 
or  danfjer.  And  since  we  are  all  exposed  to  afflictions, 
it  would  seem  to  be  both  reasonable  and  important  that 
we  prepare  for  them.  This  year  will  tread  the  beaten 
round  of  the  years  that  have  preceded  it.  Sickness  and 
sorrow  and  change  will  come,  as  they  have  been  wont  to 
come,  and  do  their  allotted  work.  Families  that  are  now 
in  affluence  may  see  their  riches  make  to  themselves 
wings  and  fly  away.  Families  that  are  now  given  up  to 
unthinking  gaiety,  may  be  clad  in  mourning.  Some  who 
are  to-day  in  health  will  die.  Others  will  lose  their  health, 
and  fall  into  tlie  sad  routine  which  defines  the  life  of  an 
invalid.  Parents  will  still  be  tried  by  the  follies  and  the 
sins  of  their  children.  Whatever  else  may  fail,  trouble 
will  not  forego  its  mission.  Where,  or  in  what  shape,  it 
may  come,  no  finite  mind  may  presume  to  say.  But  that 
its  foot-prints  will  be  seen  here  on  the  next  new  year's 
day,  in  places  where  they  are  not  seen  now,  and,  in  some 
instances,  freshly  made  where  they  are  seen  now,  no  one 
can  for  a  moment  hesitate  to  believe. 


MOTJOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  21 

Can  you  wonder,  then,  if  you  are  urged  to  make  tliis 
pledge  of  sympathy  and  protection  your  own"?  We  are 
none  of  us  able  to  cope  with  affliction  in  our  own  strength. 
Men  of  obtuse  sensibilities  may  bear  trouble  without  heed- 
ing it.  Natural  fortitude  or  pride  may  do  something 
towards  sustaining  an  individual  under  it.  But  in  neither 
case  is  there  anything  in  the  deportment  worthy  of  our 
rational  nature,  and  of  the  relations  we  sustain  to  God. 
Affliction  is  his  rod.  He  never  uses  it  without  a  pur- 
pose. He  means  that  we  shall  feel  it.  To  be  indifferent 
to  it,  or  to  bear  it  with  a  proud  and  sullen  acquiescence, 
is  an  affront  to  Him.  Christian  resignation  is  as  alien 
from  this  carriage  as  light  from  darkness.  There  can  be 
no  true  submission  except  as  He  imparts  it.  Nor  can  we 
have  any  adequate  support  in  seasons  of  trial  except  that 
which  comes  from  Him. 

'God  is  mine  Helper!'  What  could  mourners  do 
without  this  %  The  shafts  of  death  are  falling  around  us, 
smiting  here  a  blooming  infant,  there  a  man  of  three- 
score and  ten,  and  there  a  youth  in  the  pride  and  flush 
of  early  manhood; — what  are  these  stricken  households 
to  do  if  they  cannot  say  '  God  is  my  Helper !'  And  what 
other  dependence  have  these  invalids,  to  whom  are  allot- 
ted weary  months  of  debility  and  suffering]  Even  if 
their  trial  be  not  aggravated  by  the  woes  of  poverty,  and 
they  eajoy  the  alleviations  which  wealth  can  command, 
and  the  soothing  ministry  of  attached  friends,  these  can- 
not satisfy  them.  They  need  something  which  they  can 
hope  for  unvaryingly;  something  which  can  make  them 
see  that  it  is  a  Father's  hand  that  is  leading  them  along 
this  thorny  path ;  something  which  can  disarm  death  of 
its  sting,  and  reveal  to  them  a  risen  Saviour  and  a  recon- 


22  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

ciled  God;  something  which  can  fill  their  souls  -svith 
peace  and  patience,  and,  as  their  sufferings  abound,  cause 
their  consolations  to  superabound.  This  'something' 
earth  has  not  to  give.  It  is  bound  up  in  the  sweet  assur- 
ance, 'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

There  are  those  here  who  have  found  it  so.  I  have 
but  rehearsed  to  you  their  experience.  And  an  experi- 
ence it  is  of  so  much  higher  value  than  anything  of  earth 
that  I  should  only  degrade  it  by  comparing  it  with  gold 
and  silver,  or  thrones  and  sceptres.  Is  not  the  bare  state- 
ment of  the  case  sufficient  to  commend  their  example  to 
your  imitation "?  Rest  assured  it  will  be  a  privilege  and 
blessing  above  all  price  if  you  shall  be  able  to  say,  when 
disappointment  and  suffering  come, '  God  is  mine  Helper.' 
For  in  the  Lord  Jehovah  is  everlasting  strength;  and 
with  his  arms  around  you,  you  cannot  sink.  The  storm 
may  rage,  and  the  billows  swell,  and  your  frail  bark  may 
strain  and  quiver,  but  if  Christ  be  with  you  what  have 
you  to  fear]  He  has  but  to  say  to  the  surging  waves, 
'Peace;  Be  Still!'  and  a  calm  like  that  which  soothed 
the  boisterous  Gennesareth  will  spread  itself  through 
your  agitated  breast.  That  soul  can  have  nothing  to 
dread  which  has  heard  those  wondrous  words,  '  Fear  not, 
for  I  am  with  thee:  Be  not  dismayed,  for  I  am  thy  God.' 
Happy  will  it  be  for  us  if,  as  this  year  wears  on  and  we 
encounter  its  trials,  we  can  say  with  an  humble  and 
steadfast  faith,  'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

Still  more,  if  possible,  shall  we  need  this  succor  in  our 
spiritual  confiicts.     If  we  cannot  wage  the  warfare  with 
sorrow  in  our  own  strength,  much  less  can  we  carry  on 
our  warfare  with  sin.     Here,  above  all  others,  is  the  field  . 
where  we  are  made  conscious  of  our  impotence. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  23 

'  Deny  thyself,  and  take  thy  cross, 
Is  the  Redeemer's  great  command.' 

His  '  great  command'  it  is ;  and  great  is  the  difficulty 
of  obeying  it.  Outward  hinderances  and  dangers  may 
be  formidable,  but  they  are  not  peculiar  to  the  Christian 
life.  And  if  they  were,  this  would  still  remain  'the  great 
command,' — 'If  any  man  will  come  after  me,  let  him  deny 
himself,  and  take  up  his  cross  daily,  and  follow  me.'  The 
grand  requisition  of  Christianity  is  a  discipline  which 
amounts  to  self-crucifixion.  It  begins  with  the  first  ear- 
nest aspiration  of  the  sinner  to  be  freed  from  his  bondage. 
It  terminates  only  with  the  believer's  expiring  breath. 
The  whole  field  he  traverses  in  making  his  way  to  the 
celestial  city  has  to  be  fought  over,  step  by  step.  And 
the  discouraging  thing  about  it  is  that  he  carries  his 
worst  adversaries  in  his  own  bosom.  It  is  himself  he  has 
to  contend  against ;  himself  that  is  to  be  subdued ;  himselt 
that  has  to  be  crucified.  What  wonder  that  even  the 
great  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  holy  as  he  was,  and  hon- 
ored of  God  and  man  as  he  was,  should  be  so  harassed 
by  this  warfare  as  to  exclaim,  '  Oh  wretched  man  that  I 
am,  who  shall  deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death!' 

This  contest  is  before  us  all — all  except  those  who  are 
content  to  submit  themselves  to  the  unchallenged  and 
brutal  mastery  of  their  corrupt  passions.  The  sins  we 
have  to  struggle  with  may  vary  with  our  temperaments, 
our  training,  and  our  circumstances.  With  some  they 
will  have  acquired  a  colossal  strength,  while  with  others 
they  may  be  comparatively  feeble  or  already  brought  into 
partial  subjection.  But  in  every  case  the  final  issue 
must  depend  upon  the  aid  received  from  above.     No  one, 


24  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

not  even  the  most  mature  and  stable  Christian,  can  stand 
before  the  power  and  subtlety  of  his  own  sins,  except  as 
an  Almighty  arm  holds  him  up. 

All  along  the  paths  before  us  there  are  temptations 
and  snares  correspondent  with  our  several  characters  and 
occupations.  Could  the  curtain  be  withdrawn  from  this 
year,  as  it  now  is  from  the  year  just  closed,  it  would 
make  us  tremble  to  discover  what  perils  await  our  souls, 
and  how  deadly  and  exhausting  a  contest  we  must  have 
with  our  besetting  sins  before  we  can  attain  true  peace 
of  mind.  Especially  would  it  fill  us  with  anxiety  should 
we  learn,  as  we  might,  that  this  year  was  to  close  the 
strife  and  determine  our  everlasting  destiny. 

Is  it  possible,  in  this  aspect  of  things,  to  exaggerate 
the  importance  and  the  seasonableness  of  the  Scripture 
with  which  we  have  to  do'?  The  exigences  of  this  war- 
fare are  upon  us.  We  cannot  escape  it.  The  true 
question  with  us  all  must  be,  '  How  can  I  meet  it  V  And 
how  can  we  meet  it,  except  in  the  strength  of  Omnipo- 
tence'? If  we  can  but  say,  'God  is  mine  Helper,'  all 
will  be  well.  AVe  may  say  of  this  motto,  what  Constan- 
tino said  of  the  sign  of  the  cross,  which,  according  to  the 
tradition,  he  saw  in  the  air,  and  then  placed  upon  his 
banner, — 'In  hoc  signo  vinces:'  "By  this  sign  thou  shalt 
conquer."  With  a  covenant  God  for  our  Defender,  we 
need  not  fear  the  assaults  of  earth  or  hell,  or  the  more 
dangerous  corruption  and  treachery  of  our  own  hearts. 
The  conflict  may  be  severe  and  protracted,  but  its  issue 
is  as  certain  as  it  will  be  glorious.  "  Mine  enemies  would 
daily  swallow  me  up:  for  they  be  many  that  fight  against 
me,  O  thou  most  High.     What  time  I  am  afraid  I  will 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  25 

trust  in  thee."  "When  I  cry  unto  thee,  then  shall  mine 
enemies  turn  their  back :  this  I  know ;  for  God  is  for 
me."  "Unto  thee,  O  my  strength,  will  I  sing:  for  God 
is  my  defence,  and  the  God  of  my  mercy." 

Such,  then,  is  the  divine  equipment  with  which  I 
would  have  you  go  forth  to  the  duties  and  temptations,  the 
trials  and  pleasures,  of  another  year.  To  show  wherein 
God  is  accustomed  to  '  help '  his  people,  how  willing  he  is 
to  do  it,  in  what  manner  his  aid  is  to  be  sought,  would 
exceed  our  allotted  time.  Nor  can  these  points  require 
elucidation  to  those  who  know  what  it  is  to  trust  in 
him.  Enough,  that  it  is  the  ineffable  privilege  of  every 
one  of  his  children  to  carry  the  assurance  into  all  the 
avocations  and  events  of  life,  'God  is  mine  Helper.' 

Take  it  as  your  pastor's  New- Year's  wish  and  prayer, 
May  God  he  your  Helper  ilirougliout  this  opening  year! 
May  he  help  you,  in  joy  and  in  sorrow,  in  sickness  and 
in  health.  May  He  help  you  in  poverty  and  in  affluence, 
in  your  successes  and  in  your  reverses.  May  He  help 
you  in  all  your  efforts  to  subdue  your  sins,  and  all  your 
exertions  to  promote  the  prosperity  of  his  Church  and 
the  salvation  of  your  fellow-creatures.  May  He  help 
you  in  fulfilling  your  daily  duties,  and  in  bearing  your 
daily  burdens.  May  He  help  you  in  submitting  to  trials 
without  murmuring,  and  in  enduring  wrongs  without 
resentment;  in  receiving  mercies  without  ingratitude, 
and  in  enjoying  this  life  without  forgetting  the  life  to 
come.  May  He  help  you  in  denying  sinful  self  and  in 
denying  righteous  self;  in  growing  up  into  His  image 
and  putting  on  all  the  graces  of  the  Spirit.  May  He 
help  you  in  preparing  for  whatever  He  is  preparing  for 


26  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

you.  And  if  it  be  so,  that  this  is  the  last  New  Year's 
Sabbath  you  are  to  spend  on  earth,  may  the  dawn  of 
another  year  find  you  enjoying  that  Sabbath  whose  sun 
never  goes  down,  and  whose  worship  shall  never  end ! 


1859. 


II. 
THE  LORD  IS  AT  HAND, 

PHILIPPIANS  IV.  5. 


In  my  last  New  Year's  sermon  I  endeavored  to  recom- 
mend to  you  a  certain  text  of  scripture  as  your  motto  for 
the  year.  That  text,  'God  is  mine  Helper,'  has  so  often 
recurred  to  my  own  mind  with  its  lessons  of  encourage- 
ment and  comfort,  that  I  cannot  but  believe  it  has  been  a 
source  of  consolation  to  many  of  my  people  also.  You 
will  not  think  it  strange,  then,  that  on  the  occurrence 
of  this  anniversary,  I  should  offer  you  a  motto  for  the 
opening  year. 

'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  It  is  not  certain  what  was  the 
precise  import  of  these  words,  as  used  by  the  apostle. 
The  commentators  are  generally  agreed  that  by  'the 
Lord'  is  intended  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  not  simply  the 
Supreme  Being.  His  being  '  at  hand'  may  be  interpreted 
either  of  time  or  of  place.  Both  senses  give  a  good  sig- 
nification, and  both  are  in  accordance  with  the  teaching 
of  the  Bible.  By  virtue  of  His  Deity,  He  is  present  with 
all  his  creatures ;  as  well  a  God  at  hand  as  a  God  afar 
off.     And  this  thought  would  not  be  inapposite  to  the 

(27) 


28  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

tenor  of  the  context.  But  as  similar  expressions  are 
repeatedly  used  in  the  New  Testament  to  denote  an 
actual  coming  of  the  Saviour  to  our  world,  the  phrase  is 
to  be  referred  rather  to  time  than  to  place.  Of  those 
expressions,  again,  some  refer  to  the  day  of  judgment; 
others  to  his  providential  coming  for  the  overthrow  of 
Jerusalem;  and  others  still  to  the  death  of  believers. 
Thus,  we  read,  'The  coming  of  the  Lord  draweth  nigh.' 
'  Yet  a  little  while,  and  he  that  shall  come,  will  come  and 
will  not  tarry.'  'Who  may  abide  in  the  day  of  his  com- 
ing, and  who  shall  stand  when  he  appearethl'  The 
apostle  James  makes  use  of  this  consideration  by  way  of 
comforting  Christians  under  oppression:  'Be  ye  also 
patient ;  stablish  your  hearts :  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord 
draweth  nigh.' 

Without  stopping  to  ascertain  the  exact  meaning  of 
the  phrase  in  these  several  places,  we  shall  not  mistake 
seriously  if  we  accept  the  text  as  referring  to  the  coming 
of  Christ  to  the  judgment;  or,  what  is  practically  the 
same  thing,  his  coming  to  the  soul  at  death. 

For  the  purposes  of  the  present  discourse,  however,  we 
need  not  exclude  the  other  idea  of  place.  I  would  have 
you  take  the  expression  in  a  popular  way,  as  we  are 
wont  to  do  with  mottoes, — not  refining  upon  the  terms, 
but  using  it  with  freedom  as  a  sentiment  to  be  taken 
with  you  into  all  the  scenes  and  through  all  the  changes 
which  this  year  may  bring  with  it. 

'  The  Lord  is  at  hand  !'  If  we  could  suppose  this  to 
be  written  upon  oiu*  hearts  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and 
kept  there  in  its  freshness  and  vigor,  how  powerful  and 
how  salutary  the  influence  it  would  exert  upon  us  during 
the  coming  twelvemonth,  or  for  as  much  of  that  period 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  29 

as  it  may  please  God  to  spare  us.  Let  us  illustrate  this 
thought. 

The  present  is  the  season  at  which  most  persons  frame 
their  plans  for  the  year.  Speaking  without  regard  to 
particular  occupations,  how  different  will  your  plans  and 
aims  be  according  as  you  admit  into  your  calculations, 
or  exclude,  this  one  element!  With  a  lively  apprehen- 
sion of  the  fact  that  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  your  entire 
scheme  of  life  will  be  one  thing ;  without  it,  it  will  be  a 
radically  different  thing.  For  this  sentiment,  affiliated 
as  it  is  with  others  of  like  significance,  must  be  of  potent 
agency  in  any  mind  which  embraces  it.  It  is  stamped 
with  too  much  importance  and  too  much  solemnity  to  lie 
inert,  like  a  mathematical  axiom.  Its  proper  effect  is 
to  bring  the  soul  into  the  presence  of  eternity,  to  gather 
around  it  the  sublime  realties  of  the  invisible  world,  and  to 
reveal  the  indissoluble  connection  which  subsists  between 
our  daily  experiences  and  the  issues  of  the  life  to  come. 
Only  believe  that  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  and  you  will 
consent  to  no  scheme  of  effort  which  is  defiled  with  the 
taint  of  practical  atheism.  Nothing  will  satisfy  you  but 
a  plan  which  proceeds  upon  the  morality  of  the  Bible, 
which  devoutly  recognizes  a  universal  Providence,  and 
which  contemplates,  as  its  ultimate  ends,  the  glory  of 
God  and  the  well-being  of  your  fellow-creatures. 

In  this  view,  our  year-text  may  be  commended  to 
persons  of  all  classes  and  conditions.  But  there  may  be 
those  here  who  are  forming,  not  merely  their  plans  for 
the  year,  but  their  plans  for  life;  and  to  these  the  text 
proffers  its  friendly  aid  with  an  urgency  which  ought  not 
to  be  declined.  '•How  can  I  make  the  most  of  life  ?' — 
this  is  the  question  which  stirs  your  bosoms,  as  it  well 


30  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

may.  For  it  is  not  a  question  to  be  trifled  with.  To 
evade  it,  to  decide  it  carelessly,  or  to  weigh  it  only  in  the 
scales  of  an  earthly  expediency,  would  be  a  grievous  sin. 
We  are  all  sent  into  the  world  upon  a  specific  mission. 
We  have  a  work  to  do  for  God.  Our  talents  and 
acquirements,  our  resources  and  opportunities,  are  from 
Him.  And  it  is  his  equitable  demand  that  we  employ 
them  in  his  service.  To  choose  one's  profession  or  occu- 
pation without  regard  to  this  principle,  savors  of  impiety, 
and  forbids  all  hope  of  his  blessing.  But  there  would  be 
little  danger  of  mistake  on  this  point  with  one  whose 
habitual  feeling  is  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  The  idea  that 
we  were  soon  to  stand  at  his  bar  and  give  an  account  of 
all  the  deeds  done  in  the  body,  would  be  an  eff'ectual 
counterpoise  to  those  selfish  or,  at  least,  purely  secular 
considerations  by  which  we  are  so  apt  to  be  swayed  in 
deciding  questions  of  duty.  In  fact,  questions  of  duty 
are  treated  too  much  as  if  they  were  merely  questions  of 
convenience,  or  questions  of  profit  and  loss,  or  questions 
of  self-aggrandizement.  Let  the  young  men  who  are 
present  ponder  this  matter,  and  beware  lest  they  fall  into 
a  disastrous  error, — one  which  will  give  a  false  bias  to 
their  whole  future  career,  and  leave  them  at  last  with 
nothing  to  show  for  life  but  fruitless  regrets  and  bitter 
self-reproaches. 

No  less  apposite  would  this  motto  be  in  respect  to  the 
actual  prosecution  of  our  several  callings.  If  it  has  a 
lesson  for '  those  who  are  deciding  upon  a  profession,  or 
maturing  arrangements  for  life  of  a  difi'erent  kind,  it 
teaches  with  equal  cogency  in  what  spirit  our  several 
tasks  should  be  carried  forward.  For  one  thing,  it  re- 
bukes our  sloth  and  inefficiency.     The  proper  sequence 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  31 

to  the  sentiment,  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  is  '  Life  in  eaim- 
esV  HoAV  little  there  is  of  this,  especially  in  the  sphere 
of  religion,  it  needs  but  a  glance  to  see.  And  yet  the 
quality  of  earnestness  is  one  which  commands  luiiversal 
respect.  Every  one  is  attracted  to  an  earnest  man,  even 
though  he  be  earnest  in  a  matter  with  which  we  cannot 
sympathize.  But  for  the  most  part,  we  pursue  our  work, 
if  not  with  leaden  feet,  yet  with  a  loitering,  truant  in- 
dustry, which  seems  to  imply  that  life  is  long  and  sure. 
There  is  probably  no  one  here  who  can  review  the  year  just 
closed  without  feeling  that  he  might,  with  the  ordinary 
blessing  of  Providence,  have  accomplished  far  more 
during  that  year  than  he  now  has  to  show  for  it.  In  the 
way  of  self-improvement ;  in  the  way,  possibly,  of  your 
business ;  in  the  way  of  doing  good  both  to  the  souls 
and  the  bodies  of  yoiu'  fellow-creatures ;  you  might  have 
had  a  very  different  retrospect  from  that  which  a  too 
faithful  memory  brings  before  you.  It  may  save  us  from 
the  renewal  of  these  reproaches  hereafter,  should  we 
enter  upon  the  new  year  with  the  feeling  deeply  in- 
wrought into  our  minds,  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand ! '  For  if 
this  conviction  be  lodged  in  the  heart,  it  will  help  to 
keep  us  mindful  of  the  responsibility  we  are  under  to 
God  for  the  diligent  cultivation  of  all  our  powers,  and 
the  faithful  performance  of  all  our  duties. 

Nor,  in  respect  to  the  secularities  of  life,  would  it  tell 
simply  upon  these  habits.  It  would  be  no  less  an  incen- 
tive to  truthfulness  and  integrity.  The  paths  of  business 
are  thickly  strewn  with  temptations.  Men  are  continu- 
ally dealing  with  questions  of  practical  morality  in  the 
presence  of  their  own  pecuniary  interest,  and  this  en- 
forced, it  may  be,  by  urgent  want  or  by  the  sense  of 


32  MOTTOES  FOR  HIE  NEW  YEAR. 

impending  bankruptcy.  What  wonder  that  their  honesty 
should  often  prove  unequal  to  the  strain  thus  put  upon 
it?  that  concealment  and  deception  and  double-dealing 
should  abound  so  much  throughout  the  wide  realm  of 
traffic?  The  busy  actors  in  that  realm  need  to  be  forti- 
fied against  these  enticements.  For  it  is  a  perilous  thing, 
even  to  the  best  of  men,  to  have  to  do  all  the  while  with 
money.  Eighteen  centuries  ago  it  was  written  by  an  unerr- 
ing pen,  '  The  love  of  money  is  the  root  of  all  evil.'  And  a 
thousand  -years  before  that,  the  wisest  and  richest  man  of 
the  age,  or  perhaps  of  any  age,  had  written  '  The  getting  of 
treasures  by  a  lying  tongue  is  a  vanity  tossed  to  and  fro 
of  them  that  seek  death.'  And  going  back  still  further, 
Gehazi,  with  the  costly  vestments  he  obtained  by  fraud 
from  Naaman,  and  Achan  with  his  wedge  of  gold,  and  Lot 
with  his  broad  acres  in  the  well-watered  vale  of  Sodom, 
and  many  others  chronicled  in  Holy  Writ,  come  forward 
to  illustrate  the  warnings  addressed  to  us  on  this  subject. 
He,  therefore,  is  not  a  wise  man  who,  being  shut  up  by 
Providence  to  the  snares  which  are  embosomed  in  a  life 
of  merchandise  or  a  life  of  handicraft,  declines  any  safe- 
guard which  may  help  to  protect  him  from  these  dangers. 
And  among  such  adjuvants,  he  would  find  it  of  no  trivial 
assistance  to  remember,  day  by  day,  that  '  The  Lord  is  at 
hand.'  The  conviction  of  this  truth  would  do  much 
both  to  inspire  him  with  a  just  estimate  of  the  value  of 
money,  and  to  preserve  him  from  unwarrantable  expedi- 
ents for  the  acquisition  of  it.  Let  the  men  of  business 
who  hear  me,  inscribe  upon  the  walls  of  their  counting- 
rooms  and  their  workshops,  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  and 
it  will,  by  God's  grace,  carry  them  safely  through  many 
a  temptation  which  might  otherwise  conquer  them. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  33 

But  we  may  go  beyond  the  thoroughfares  of  busmess 
and  generalize  this  idea.  Could  every  heart  be  imbued 
with  this  feeling,  it  would  do  much  to  rectify  that  mal- 
arrangement  of  things  which  sin  has  occasioned  in  the 
affairs  of  our  world.  By  the  force  of  a  fatal  introversion, 
darkness  is  now  put  for  light,  and  light  for  darkness. 
Time  takes  precedence  of  eternity.  The  things  which 
are  seen  overshadow  the  things  which  are  not  seen. 
And  earth  absorbs  the  homage  and  the  toil,  the  love  and 
the  devotion,  which  belong  to  God.  Were  it  properly  felt 
that  'The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  all  human  interests  would 
put  on  a  different  aspect.  With  the  light  of  eternity 
let  in  upon  our  present  abode,  the  plans  which  terminate 
here,  and  the  common  objects  of  ambition  among  men, 
would  dwindle  into  their  true  insignificance.  The  riches 
which  make  to  themselves  wings  and  fly  away,  and  the 
fame  which  lives  upon  the  caprices  of  the  populace, 
would  be  regarded  as  unworthy  the  supreme  regard  of  a 
rational  nature.  Eeligion  would  rise  to  something  of  its 
real  importance  in  the  general  estimation.  Men  would 
freely  admit  that  it  was  'the  one  thing  needful.'  And 
no  exertions  would  be  deemed  too  great,  no  sacrifices  too 
costly,  which  might  be  demanded  for  the  acquisition  of 
its  unspeakable  blessings. 

In  the  two  brief  Epistles  of  St.  Peter,  this  argument 
is  repeatedly  used  as  an  incentive  to  Christian  steadfast- 
ness and  perseverance.  "  But  the  end  of  all  things  is  at 
hand:  be  ye  therefore  sober,  and  watch  unto  prayer." 
"  Nevertheless  we,  according  to  his  promise,  look  for  new 
heavens  and  a  new  earth  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness. 
Wherefore,  beloved,  seeing  ye  look  for  such  things,  be 
diligent  that  ye  may  be  found  of  him  in  peace,  without 


34  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

spot  and  blameless."  No  truly  Christian  heart  can 
well  be  insensible  to  appeals  like  these.  'The  Master 
comes.  He  comes  to  pass  judgment  upon  your  work. 
He  comes  to  conduct  you  to  the  new  heavens  and  new 
earth,  where  you  are  to  dwell  with  him  forever.  There- 
fore, prepare  to  meet  Himl' 

We  are  not  without  examples  to  show  the  effect  of 
this  where  it  is  really  believed.  Instances  are  constantly 
occurring  of  Christians  who  are  stricken  by  some  incur- 
able malady,  and  compelled  to  believe  that  '  The  Lord  is 
at  hand.'  And  from  the  moment  this  conviction  is 
established  in  their  minds,  all  other  interests  give  place 
to  their  preparation  for  his  advent.  His  word  is  their 
companion.  His  precious  promises  are  their  support. 
They  are  earnest  in  examining  the  foundations  of  their 
hope.  They  are  most  anxious  that  their  repentance 
should  be  deep  and  sincere.  They  are  'sober.'  They 
'watch  unto  prayer.'  They  gird  their  loins  and  trim 
their  lamps.  They  'lay  aside  every  weight  and  the  sin 
which  doth  so  easily  beset  them,'  and  patiently  await  his 
coming — 'looking  unto  Jesus.' 

We  have  all  seen  this.  It  must  needs  be  so  with  a 
believer  who  knows  that  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  And 
were  this  sentiment  wrought  into  the  heart  of  the  Church 
as  it  ought  to  be,  it  would  yield  the  same  fruit  with  all 
his  followers.  Nor  is  it  of  any  force  to  reply,  that  the 
case  of  a  Christian  anticipating  death  is  widely  different 
from  that  of  other  Christians.  The  several  passages 
quoted  from  the  sacred  oracles,  the  text  itself  included, 
were  addressed,  not  to  the  dying,  but  to  the  living — to 
those  who  were  engaged  in  all  the  activities  of  life,  and 
who  might  perhaps  anticipate   length  of  days  with  as 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  35 

much  reason  as  any  of  us.  It  is  to  these  the  Saviour  and 
his  apostles  say,  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  'The  judge 
standeth  before  the  door.'  'I  will  come  again  and  re- 
ceive you  unto  myself  For  they,  like  all  other  men, 
ourselves  among  them,  were  liable  to  die  at  any  moment. 
And  it  was  the  part  of  prudence,  therefore,  and  ot 
Christian  duty,  to  be  habitually  mindful  of  this.  It  may 
be  true  of  some  of  us,  with  a  certainty  which  does  not 
even  appertain  to  individuals  who  appear  to  be  drawing 
nigh  to  the  grave,  that  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  And  the 
point  I  am  enforcing  is,  that  if  we  felt  this  as  we  should 
feel  it,  it  would  be  a  great  antidote  to  the  torpor  and  the 
lassitude  of  our  personal  Christianity.  We  should  be 
more  concerned  to  make  our  calling  and  election  sure. 
We  should  struggle  more  manfully  against  our  besetting 
sins.  It  would  put  us  upon  a  more  thorough  searching 
of  our  own  hearts,  that  every  lawless  passion  might  be 
subdued,  that  every  impure  motive  might  be  discarded, 
that  every  unholy  desire  might  be  detected  and  crucified. 
It  would  supply  the  defects  and  smooth  down  the  excesses 
which  deform  the  characters  of  so  many  Christians.  It 
would  repress  those  mischievous  tempers  which  alienate 
brethren,  and  sow  discord  in  the  household  of  faith.  It 
would  admonish  every  Diotrephes  against  loving  to  have 
the  pre-eminence,  and  every  Demas  against  the  love  of 
this  present  world,  and  every  Archippus  against  the  neg- 
lect of  his  ministry,  and  every  pains-taking  Martha 
against  being  cumbered  with  much  serving. 

Every  Christian,  indeed,  would  feel  the  beneficial  effect 
of  this  general  conviction,  that  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand.' 
The  entire  Christianity  of  the  Church  would  develop  it- 
self, if  not  in  new  forms,  at  least  with  an  energy  and  a 


36  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

beauty  now  presented  only  in  exceptional  cases,  which 
deserve,  as  they  receive,  the  encomiums  of  all  who  can 
appreciate  genuine  piety.  For,  humbling  as  the  confes- 
sion is,  it  must  be  made,  that  the  sentiment  we  are  in- 
culcating has  but  a  languid  hold  upon  the  mass  even  of 
real  believers,  and  that  the  spectacle  is  rarely  witnessed 
even  of  a  single  Church  whose  whole  organic  life  is  ani- 
mated by  this  principle.  What  we  all  need  is  a  stronger 
faith, — a  more  implicit  belief  in  the  verities  of  God's 
word;  and  especially  a  profounder  sense  of  that  most 
pregnant  truth,  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  This  would,  by 
God's  blessing,  lift  our  Christianity  out  of  the  dust,  and 
gird  it  with  strength,  and  clothe  it  with  beauty,  and 
disencumber  it  of  the  misgivings  and  the  faltcrings, 
the  selfishness  and  the  worldliness  with  which  it  is  now 
clogged,  and  so  make  it  less  unworthy  of  that  sacred 
name  into  which  it  has  been  baptized. 

To  be  more  specific: — a  decisive  effect  would  be  pro- 
duced, so  it  is  reasonable  to  presume,  upon  the  spirituality 
of  the  Church,  and  the  maxims  by  which  it  is  governed 
in  the  training  of  its  children  and  the  administration  of 
its  steivardsliip.  How  closely  the  Church  had  approxi- 
mated to  the  world,  and  how  much  it  needed  that  great 
revival  of  interest  in  Christian  truth  with  which  it  has 
pleased  God  to  visit  our  land,  must  be  too  well  known 
to  require  illustration.  Of  the  several  points  of  delin- 
quency which  pertained  to  this  wide-spread  declension, 
there  was  none  more  conspicuous,  none  more  affecting, 
than  the  withholding  of  the  children  of  the  covenant 
from  Him  to  whom  they  had  been  solemnly  dedicated. 
The  seal  of  the  covenant  was  upon  them,  but  that  was 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  37 

all.  They  were  trained  for  the  world.  And  as  they 
grew  up  the  world  claimed  and  received  its  own. 

So,  also,  it  was  to  a  large  extent  with  the  iveaJth  of 
the  Church.  Ostensibly  consecrated  to  God,  his  treasury 
was  put  off  with  a  pittance;  and  the  rest  was  appro- 
priated to  luxury,  or  handed  over  to  indefinite  accumula- 
tion. 

I  am  speaking  in  the  past  tense.  If  these  things  are 
still  so,  there  can  be  no  better  corrective  for  them  than 
the  one  supplied  by  our  text.  I  do  not  say,  for  I  do  not 
believe,  that  the  conviction  that  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand' 
will,  of  itself,  relax  the  grasp  of  avarice  and  open  its 
coffers  to  the  poor.  If  there  be  any  office  in  the  routine 
of  human  affairs  which  demands  the  right  of  Omnipo- 
tence, it  is  that  of  making  a  penurious  man  liberal.  But 
the  covetousness  of  the  Church,  the  parsimony  which 
contrives  to  live  and  even  flourish,  where,  in  the  judg- 
ment of  charity,  there  is  a  spark  of  true  religion,  this  may 
be  reached  by  the  conviction  of  the  approach  of  the  Lord. 
The  more  vividly  this  sentiment  is  impressed  upon  the 
conscience  of  the  Church,  the  more  thoroughly  will  she 
be  purged  of  that  cupidity  which  is  an  opprobrium  to  her 
name,  and  a  crime  against  Him,  who,  though  rich,  for 
her  sake  became  poor,  that  she  through  his  poverty 
might  be  rich. 

And  whenever,  under  the  influence  of  this  feeling,  the 
Church  surrenders  her  silver  and  gold  to  her  Redeemer, 
she  will  no  longer  refuse  him  her  children.  Let  it  be 
once  consciously  felt  that '  The  Lord  is  at  hand,'  and  the 
very  parents  who  have  sold  their  children  to  the  world 
for  a  mess  of  pottage,  will  hasten  after  them  to  reclaim 
them,  if  it  may  be,  and  bring  them  to  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 


38  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

Fearful  will  be  our  final  account,  if  we  have  been  faith- 
less to  this  trust.  Let  the  announcement  that  '  The 
Lord  is  at  hand'  stir  us  all  up  to  greater  earnestness  and 
prayer  in  seeking  the  salvation  of  our  children. 

It  seems  to  have  been  with  some  reference  to  the 
ivrongs  to  which  they  were  exposed,  and  the  perils  of 
their  situation,  that  the  Apostle  reminded  the  Pliilip- 
pians  of  the  approach  of  their  Lord.  "  Let  your  modera- 
tion be  known  unto  all  men.  The  Lord  is  at  hand.  Be 
careful  for  nothing;  but  in  everything  by  prayer  and 
supplication  with  thanksgiving  let  your  request  be  made 
known  unto  God."  The  word  translated  'moderation' 
has  no  equivalent  in  our  language.  It  seems  to  denote 
here  a  certain  sweetness  and  serenity  of  temper,  which 
takes  all  things  in  good  part,  and  is  not  disturbed  even 
by  casualties  and  injuries.  Whether  we  connect  the 
text,  then,  with  this  clause,  or  with  the  exhortation 
which  follows,  there  is  a  friendly  remonstrance  here 
against  excessive  anxiety  or  resentment  when  exposed 
to  misfortunes  or  suffering  injustice.  A  rare  achievement 
it  is  to  be  able  to  suffer  thus.  Some  of  the  strongest 
passions  of  our  nature  rebel  against?  it.  Nay,  we  are 
rufHed  not  merely  on  great  occasions,  but  by  the  most 
msignificant  occurrences.  AVe  allow  the  veriest  trifles 
to  disturb  our  equanimity,  and  enkindle  our  angry  feel- 
ings. The  Scripture  remedy  for  this  is,  '  The  Lord  is  at 
hand.'  A  mind  suitably  impressed  with  this  truth  will 
not  be  thrown  from  its  balance  by  any  of  the  minor 
troubles  of  life.  You  cannot  realize  that  your  Saviour 
is  near,  and  that  you  may  hear  his  summons  at  any 
moment,  without  knowing  that  He  will  redress  your 
wrongs.     Rather  will  you  say  with  the  Psalmist,  '  The 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  39 

Lord  is  on  my  side ;  I  will  not  fear :  what  can  man  do 
unto  me'?'  And  should  you  even  be  assailed  by  malevo- 
lent calumnies,  or  despoiled  of  your  property,  it  will  still 
soothe  you  to  remember  that  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.' 

What  this  conviction  wdll  do  for  the  injured,  it  will  as 
certainly  do  for  the  afflicted.  And  in  this  view,  there 
must  be  those  here  who  will  have  occasion  for  it.  We 
know  not  how  or  where  trouble  may  come ;  but  this  year 
w^ould  be  unlike  all  the  years  which  have  preceded  it,  if 
it  should  fail  to  bring  its  cup  of  sorrow  to  some  of  our 
households.  Whenever  that  occurs,  it  may  be  a  solace 
to  reflect  that  'The  Lord  is  at  hand.'  At  hand  he  will 
be  in  the  sense  of  that  gracious  promise,  'When  thou 
passest  through  the  waters,  I  will  be  with  thee.'  This 
thought  is  always  a  cordial  to  the  afflicted  believer.  If 
sorrow  be  an  essential  part  of  his  heritage,  he  knows 
that  it  neither  comes  imsent,  nor  without  the  presence  of 
One  who  can  be  touched  with  a  feeling  of  his  infirmities. 
Nor  need  he  turn  away  from  the  other  aspect  of  this 
averment.  To  one  who  is  deeply  afflicted,  it  is  a  conso- 
lation to  know  that  these  trials  must  have  an  end ;  that 
He  who  in  love  and  faithfulness  sends  them,  if  not 
already  at  the  door,  is  still  not  far  away,  and  will,  in  his 
own  time  and  way,  come  and  receive  his  stricken  ones 
to  himself,  and  conduct  them  to  a  world  where  God 
himself  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes.  Let 
mourners  think  of  this.  Let  the  infirm  and  the  sick 
think  of  it.  Let  the  unfortunate,  who  are  perpetually 
struggling  with  calamities  and  disappointments,  think  of 
it.  Let  those  who  have  to  contend  with  the  bitter  trials 
of  poverty,  think  of  it.  Let  the  parents  who  have  nour- 
ished and  brought    up  children,  only  to  have  unfilial 


40  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

hands  plant  their  pillows  with  thorns,  think  of  it.  '  The 
Lord  is  at  hand.'  Your  trials  will  soon  be  at  an  end. 
And  then  shall  you  go  to  be  for  ever  with  your  Lord. 

But  there  is  still  another  form  of  trouble  which  has 
its  balm  and  medicine  here.  It  is  that  which  made  the 
apostle  cry,  '  Oh,  wretched  man  that  I  am  ;  who  shall 
deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death ! '  No  Christian 
here  can  be  a  stranger  to  it, — this  ceaseless  warfare  with 
sin  and  temptation.  It  pertains  to  the  daily  life  of  his 
soul.  Sometimes  it  rages  with  a  violence  which  threatens 
to  uproot  all  the  foundations  of  his  hope,  and  to  reimpose 
the  vile  fetters  from  which  he  was  once  emancipated.  So 
profound  is  the  subtlety  of  sin,  so  malevolent  its  spirit, 
so  insatiable  its  cravings,  so  various  its  resources,  so  in- 
domitable its  energies,  so  skilful  its  devices,  that  it  suc- 
ceeds too  often  in  ensnaring  even  the  holiest  men.  And 
there  are  periods,  perhaps,  in  the  experience  of  most 
Christians  when  "  the  proud  waters"  so  go  over  their  souls, 
and  their  bosoms  become  such  a  very  chaos  of  anxious, 
desponding,  tumultuous  feelings,  that  they  can  but  fall 
prostrate  before  God,  and  cry — 

"  Thou  Infinite  in  love, 

Guide  this  bewilder'd  mind 
Which,  like  the  trembling  dove, 

No  resting-place  can  find 
On  the  wild  waters;  God  of  light. 
Thro'  the  thick  darkness,  lead  me  right ! 

Bid  the  fierce  conflict  cease. 

And  tear  and  anguish  fly  ; 
Let  there  again  be  peace. 

As  in  the  days  gone  by : 
In  Jesus'  name  I  cry  to  Thee, 
Rememberin";  Gethseraane." 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  41 

These  are  seasons  for  the  Christian  to  welcome  the 
announcement,  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand  ! '  His  earthly  ties 
may  be  strong  and  tender,  and  his  position  one  which 
awakens  the  envy  of  his  fellows.  But  they  see  only  the 
surface.     There  are — 

'  Sins  and  doubts,  and  fears' 

within  that  seemingly  tranquil  breast,  which  would  some- 
times make  life  insupportable,  were  it  not  for  the  promised 
coming  of  the  Great  Deliverer,  and  the  pledge  of  an 
eternal  discharge  from  this  warfare.  He  fights  on  there- 
fore, for  he  knows  that  the  Captain  of  his  salvation  is 
near,  and  that  the  struggle  cannot  last  always. 

Think  of  this,  my  brethren,  in  the  conflicts  which  in- 
dwelling sin  and  the  arch-adversary  are  preparing  for 
you.  Remember  that  the  battle  is  not  yours,  but  God's, 
and  that  God,  though  invisible,  is  at  hand,  and  will 
never  leave  you  to  fall  a  prey  to  your  adversaries.  Only 
'be  faithful  unto  death,  and  He  will  give  you  a  crown 
of  life.' 

There  are  many  other  topics  which  would  properly  fall 
to  be  consid^'ed  under  this  text ;  but  I  must  not  detain 
you.  Let  me  not,  however,  dismiss  the  subject  without 
again  (Exhorting  you  all  to  bring  home  this  scripture  to 
your  hearts  and  cherish  it  day  by  day,  as  a  stimulus  to 
personal  duty. 

Without  recurring  to  duties  already  specified,  let  me 
remind  every  Christian  here  of  the  work  he  has  to  do  for 
the  unconverted  around  him.  You  know  their  condi- 
tion— 'without  God  and  having  no  hope  in  the  world.' 
Ponder  well  the  fact,  that  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand ; '  and 

then  decide  what  -you  will  do  for  them.     Peradventure 

4 


42  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

his  coming  may  be  no  blessing  to  you.,  should  he  find 
you  a  hinderance  instead  of  help  to  the  salvation  of  your 
fellow-sinners. 

And  there  is  that  in  this  reflection  which  might  seem 
enough  to  put  you,  my  impenitent  friends,  upon  the 
most  resolute  efforts  to  secure  the  forgiveness  of  your 
sins.  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand ! '  As  yet.  He  is  near  you 
in  mercy — waiting  to  be  gracious  to  you.  But  it  cannot 
always  be  thus.  His  patience  has  a  limit.  His  long- 
suffering  may  be  exhausted.  And  then,  'what  shall  the 
end  be  of  them  that  obey  not  the  Gospel  of  God  ? ' 

Happy  will  it  be  for  you,  should  you  enter  upon  this 
year  under  the  full  influence  of  the  feeling,  that  'The 
Lord  is  at  hand.'  For,  thus,  you  would  begin  to  live. 
And  surely  it  is  time.  Years  enough  have  been  given 
to  sin  and  folly.  Years  enough  have  gone  with  their 
dark  calendar  of  unpardoned  offences  to  meet  you  at  the 
bar  of  Christ.  Let  this  year  be  dedicated  to  God.  Let 
this  primal  Sabbath  of  the  year  mark  the  great  epoch  of 
your  existence,  when,  by  the  help  of  God,  you  resolved 
to  renounce  the  world  and  give  yourselves  to  the  Saviour 
in  an  everlasting  covenant. 


1860. 


III. 
''I  WILL  REJOICE  IN  THE  LORD." 

HABAKKUK  iii.  18. 


Such  is  the  text  of  Holy  Scripture  which  I  have  to 
propose  to  you  as  your  motto  for  the  year.  The  beauti- 
ful passage  in  which  it  occurs  will  be  noticed  hereafter. 
For  the  rest,  indulge  me  in  that  familiar  style  of  address 
which  I  feel  to  be  more  appropriate  to  the  occasion  than 
an  elaborate  discourse. 

The  announcement  will  fall  upon  some  incredulous 
ears,  but  is  nevertheless  true,  that  our  religion  is  a  religion 
of  joy.  This  might  be  anticipated  from  the  character 
of  the  Deity.  As  a  Being  of  infinite  goodnessf  He  must 
delight  in  the  happiness  of  his  creatures.  The  glimpses 
we  have  of  heaven  exhibit  that  glorious  realm  to  us  as 
the  scene  of  perfect  and  universal  joy.  The  same  benev- 
olence which  confers  this  affluence  of  bliss  upon  the 
angels  would  impress  itself  upon  any  system  of  relief 
designed  for  our  world.  That  this  has  been  done — 
only  in  a  far  higher  degree  than  it  was  ever  experienced 
or  needed  by  the  angels — is  demonstrated  by  a  single 
glance  at  the  cross.     With  the  cross  in  view,  nothing  in 

(43) 


44  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

the  way  of  love  and  pity  can  astonish  us.  'lie  that 
spared  not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered  him  up  for  us  all, 
how  shall  He  not  Avith  him  also  freely  give  us  all 
things'?'  It  is  impossible  that  a  religion  which  is  foimd- 
ed  upon  the  incarnation  and  death  of  the  Son  of  God 
should  not  be  adapted  to  make  men  happy  here  and 
hereafter.  We  find,  accordingly,  that  joy  has  been  one  of 
the  characteristics  of  the  Church  under  all  dispensations. 
It  was  made  a  specific  duty  of  the  Hebrews  to  'rejoice 
before  the  Lord'  for  days  together  in  certain  of  their 
festivals.  It  is  the  constant  strain  of  prophets  and  apos- 
tles,— '  Rejoice  in  the  Lord,  O  ye  righteous.'  '  The  Church, 
speaking  by  the  mouth  of  Isaiah,  says,  'I  will  greatly 
rejoice  in  the  Lord;'  and  Joel,  "Ye  children  of  Zion, 
rejoice  in  the  Lord;"  and  Zechariah,  'Their  heart  shall 
rejoice  in  the  Lord;'  and  Paul,  'Rejoice  in  the  Lord 
alway:  and  again  I  say,  rejoice.' 

The  primitive  Christians  understood  this.  They  pre- 
sented to  an  astonished  world  the  spectacle  of  a  joyful 
religion  in  circumstances  which,  by  any  earthly  standard, 
might  have  seemed  sufficient  to  hold  them  in  terror  and 
despondency  all  the  while.  From  witnessing  their  Lord's 
ascensioi>,  they  'returned  to  Jerusalem  with  great  joy, 
and  were  continually  in  the  temple,  praising  and  blessing 
God.'  After  the  day  of  Pentecost,  they  continued  daily 
in  the  temple,  eating  their  meat  with  gladness  and  sin- 
gleness of  heart.  When  arraigned  before  the  Council 
for  preaching  Christ,  they  departed  'rejoicing  that  they 
were  counted  Avorthy  to  suffer  shame  for  his  name.' 
Paul  and  Silas  prayed  and  sang  praises  to  God  at  night 
in  the  prison  at  Philippi.  And  we  learn  from  one  of  the 
Epistles  of  St.  Peter  that  the   dispersed   Christians  to 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  45 

whom  he  wrote,  rejoiced  in  Christ  'with  joy  unspeak- 
able and  full  of  glory.' 

Such  was  the  Christianity  of  the  apostolic  age.  Such 
ought  to  be  the  Christianity  of  every  age.  If  the  religion 
of  our  day  be  deficient  in  this  divine  element,  it  is  the 
more  becoming  that  we  should  take  the  sentiment  with 
us  along  the  unkno\vn  paths  of  this  opening  year,  '  I  will 
rejoice  in  the  Lord.' 

'/?i  the  Lord ' — you  will  observe.  It  is  not  every  kind 
of  joy  that  will  answer  either  to  the  teachings  of  Scrip- 
ture, or  to  our  necessities.  There  must  be  many  who 
are  saying  to  themselves  to-day,  'This  year  shall  be  to 
me  a  joyful  year.  I  mean  to  seek  my  fill  of  pleasure 
wherever  it  is  to  be  found.  What  is  life  without  joyT 
You  are  right — 'What  is  life  without  ']o\V  But  are 
you  certain  that  what  you  call  'joy'  is  the  reality  or  a 
counterfeit  ]  I  will  not  dispute  its  reality — icMle  it  lasts  ; 
still  less  challenge  its  fascinations.  But  will  it  bear  the 
test  of  a  thorough  scrutiny]  Can  you  find  place  for  it 
when  you  take  a  comprehensive  survey  of  life,  and  look 
to  the  end  of  things  as  well  as  to  the  beginning  thereof? 
It  is  conjectured  that  Solomon  wrote  the  book  of  Eccle- 
siastes  in  his  old  age  to  record  his  own  experience  of 
the  sins  and  follies  of  the  world.  In  the  first  part  of  the 
book  he  describes  the  careful  and  costly  experiment  he 
made — too  costly  and  magnificent  except  for  a  powerful 
monarch — to  frame  to  himself  a  scene  of  true  enjoyment 
out  of  merely  earthly  materials.  And  no  sooner  does  he 
present  to  our  eyes  the  lofty  and  gorgeous  fabric,  than 
he  writes  upon  it  in  blazing  capitals,  '  Vanity  of  vanities, 
all  is  vanity.'  With  not  less  significance  does  he  after- 
ward address  the  young   in   this   strain: — 'Rejoice,  O 


46  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

young  man,  in  thy  youth;  -and  lot  thy  heart  cheer  thee 
in  the  days  of  thy  youth,  and  walk  in  the  ways  of  thine 
heart,  and  in  the  sight  of  thine  eyes:  but  know  thou 
that  for  all  these  things  God  will  bring  thee  into  judg- 
ment.' 

Say  not  that  this  casts  a  deep  shadow  over  life.  There 
is  not  one  ingredient  in  this  teaching  of  the  Bible  on  this 
subject,  Vvhich  is  unfavorable  to  your  present  enjoyment. 
It  simply  requires  that  you  seek  that  kind  of  enjoyment 
which  will  be  satisfying  and  permanent.  And  in  very 
kindness  it  warns  you  of  what  you  must  unavoidably 
learn  in  the  end,  that  the  joy  you  have  in  view  is  evanes- 
cent and  illusive. 

The  joy  of  which  the  prophet  speaks  in  the  text,  and 
which  is  intended  in  the  other  passages  just  quoted, 
springs  from  faith  in  Christ.  "In  whom  believing,  ye 
rejoice."  The  truths  of  Scripture  can  effect  us  only  as 
they  are  believed.  The  stronger  our  faith,  the  more  they 
must  influence  us.  It  is  the  property  of  faith  to  give  a 
present  reality  to  the  objects  and  interests  of  the  invisible 
world.  It  is  the  suhstance  of  things  hoped  for,  the  evi- 
dence  of  things  not  seen.  A  faith  absolutely  perfect  would 
take  the  same  hold  upon  the  'things  not  seen,'  which  our 
senses  do  upon  the  material  things  around  us.  It  would, 
therefore,  raise  its  possessor  above  the  world.  It  would 
prevent  him  from  over- valuing  the  objects  which  are 
most  prized  among  men,  and  from  sinking  under  trials. 
He  would  see  everything  here  as  in  the  light  of  eternity. 
And  he  w^ould  draw  peace  and  comfort  from  sources 
which  lie  infinitely  beyond  the  reach  of  any  unbeliever. 

A  moment's  reflection  must  suffice  to  show  that  every 
true  Christian  has  the  most  ample  warrant  for  saying,  'I 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  47 

will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.'  For  the  entire  body  of  roA^ealed 
truth,  all  its  doctrines,  precepts,  and  promises,  rightly 
apprehended,  must  be  a  fountain  of  joy  to  him.  Not  to 
dwell  upon  the  character  and  perfections  of  Jehovah,  who 
is  the  source  and  spring  of  all  the  goodness  and  all  the 
happiness  in  the  universe,  consider  the  work  of  Redemp- 
tion. This  theme  is  so  familiar  that  we  speak  of  it  with 
little  or  no  emotion.  But  what  would  have  been  our 
condition  without  if?  Suppose  no  purpose  of  mercy 
towards  our  species  had  been  formed  in  the  councils  of 
the  Godhead.  Suppose  Christ  Jesus  had  not  come  into 
the  world  to  save  sinners.  Suppose  there  had  been  no 
atonement,  no  mission  of  the  Spirit,  no  Bible,  no  Church, 
no  Sabbath.  Every  one  sees  what  must  have  ensued 
with  us.  Or,  if  there  be  any  who  do  not  see,  let  them 
look  at  the  fallen  angels  and  they  will  see.  INIust  it  not, 
then,  be  a  reason  for  joy  that  the  reverse  of  all  this  has 
taken  place'? 

Just  in  proportion  as  your  faith  may  enable  you  to 
estimate  the  evils  involved  in  the  loss  of  the  soul,  and 
the  blessings  involved  in  its  salvation,  must  you  'rejoice 
in  the  Lord.'  It  is  not  for  a  careless  man  to  understand 
this.  But  you,  my  brethren,  know  what  it  is  to  be  'con- 
vinced of  sin.'  You  have  felt  the  terrors  of  an  awakened 
conscience.  You  have  felt  yourselves  exposed  to  the 
wrath  of  God.  And  you  know  something  of  the  joy 
described  by  the  Psalmist,  'Blessed  is  he  whose  trans- 
gression is  forgiven,  whose  sin  is  covered.  Blessed  is  the 
man  unto  whom  the  Lord  imputeth  not  iniquity,  and  in 
whose  spirit  there  is  no  guile.' 

And  what  a  privilege  is  it  to  have  such  a  Saviour — 
one  who  unites  in  himself  the  divine  and  human  natures, 


48  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

whose  tenderness  is  commensurate  with  his  majesty,  and 
whose  arms  offer  an  unfailing  sanctuary  to  needy  and 
guilty  sinners. 

Not  less  comforting  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
— his  ministry  of  mercy  to  the  Church,  his  perpetual 
abiding  there,  and  his  inexhaustible  love  and  compassion 
to  his  people. 

Then  come  the  '  great  and  precious  promises ' — with 
balm  fop  every  wound,  and  succor  for  every  peril,  and 
strength  for  every  trial,  to  which  the  Christian  is  exposed 
in  his  mortal  pilgrimage. 

Nor  may  we  omit  the  Scripture  view  of  Providence. 
It  can  be  no  trivial  consolation  to  the  believer,  that  it  is 
his  own  God  and  Saviour  who  is  on  the  throne ;  that 
He  upholds,  directs,  and  governs  all  things;  and  that 
under  his  beneficent  administration  all  the  Divine  dis- 
pensations towards  him  shall  work  together  for  his  ulti- 
mate good. 

And  then,  to  crown  all,  there  is  heaven  itself, — that 
'  rest  which  remaineth  unto  the  people  of  God, '  and  to 
which  every  real  disciple  has  received  a  title — 

'  Purchased  and  sealed  with  blood  Divine.' 

Now  the  most  indifferent  person  will  admit  that  here 
are  perennial  springs  of  joy  sufficient  to  meet  all  the 
cravings  of  the  soul,  and  that,  judged  by  its  infallible 
text-book,  Christianity  may  well  claim  to  be  a  joyful 
religion.  Yet  the  counter-admission  must  be  made  on 
our  part,  that  it  does  not  always  present  this  aspect  to  the 
world.  Its  disciples  do  not  habitually  'rejoice  in  the 
Lord,'  as  the  primitive  believers  did.     We  must  even 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  49 

concede  that  there  is  a  type  of  religion  prevalent 
amongst  us  which  is  seriously  deficient  in  this  element 
of  joyfulness,  or,  at  least,  in  the  manifestation  of  it. 
Without  stopping  to  seek  a  full  explanation  of  this  phe- 
nomenon, it  may  be  suggested,  that  if  there  were  more 
religion  it  would  display  itself  more  distinctly  in  all  its 
proper  characteristics.  Allowing  for  exceptional  cases, 
those  Christians  who  are  marked  by  a  consistent  and 
growing  piety  are  usually  very  happy  in  their  religion. 
It  should  not  excite  surprise  that  a  piety  which  is  sickly 
and  precarious  yields  its  possessor  no  joy. 

Again,  joy,  as  we  have  seen,'  is  the  fruit  of  faith. 
Faith  has  respect  to  the  teachings  of  Scripture.  A 
strong  faith  follows  the  patient  and  prayerful  study  of 
the  Bible.  It  implies  a  clear  apprehension  of  its  cardi- 
nal doctrines.  This  cannot  be  claimed  as  a  special 
characteristic  of  the  Christianity  of  our  times.  It  is  a 
Christianity  which  has  more  length  and  breadth  than 
depth.  It  is  diffused  and  diffusive,  but  it  does  not 
always  feed  upon  'the  strong  meat  of  the  word.'  AVhere 
it  does  this,  it  is  not  lacking  in  joy.  For  it  is  impossible 
to  meditate  with  an  intelligent  and  appropriating  faith 
upon  those  sublime  and  blessed  truths  which  lie  at  the 
basis  of  the  Gospel  without  'rejoicing  in  the  Lord.' 

And  is  it  an  error  to  intimate  that  we  are  too  much 
trained  to  regard  doubts  and  misgivings  as  a  necessary 
part  of  religion  X  There  is  very  little  of  this,  perhaps 
none  at  all,  to  be  detected  in  the  portraitures  of  the  be- 
lievers sketched  in  the  book  of  Acts.  The  Christians  ol 
the  next  two  centuries  were  equally  remarkable  for  their 
exemption  from  it.  Their  simple  faith  took  God  at  his 
word ;  and  when  once  led  to  Christ  they  were  not  afraid 


50  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAH. 

to  trust  in  him  and  to  take  the  comfort  of  it.  It  is  the 
reproach  of  our  Christianity  that  there  should  be  so  few 
who  can  say,  'I  Aj^io it?  whom  I  have  believed.'  AVhere 
this  can  be  said,  there  is  joy  of  course. 

But  without  enlarging  on  these  points,  let  me  rather 
commend  to  you  the  duty  and  privilege  of  rejoicing  in 
the  Lord.  God  requires  this  at  your  hands.  "A  faith 
without  joy,  is  an  altar  without  perfumes.  Joy  is  the 
token  and  the  ornament  of  gratitude.  Joy  should  crown 
all  our  feelings  towards  God,  and  all  our  acts  of  religion. 
Even  when  we  fast,  we  should  anoint  our  head  and  wash 
our  face.  Will  any  one  pretend  that  God  discerns,  in 
the  human  multitude,  his  own  redeemed  ones  by  the 
paleness  of  the  countenance  and  the  gloomy  expression 
of  the  eyes'?  And  would  not  the  hymn  of  gladness 
among  the  angels  in  heaven  over  the  conversion  of  a 
sinner,  which  makes  them  rejoice  more  than  the  perse- 
verance of  ninety  and  nine  believers, — would  not  that 
hymn  cease  were  the  sinner  himself  not  to  rejoice  over 
his  own  salvation'?  It  is  our  joy,  and  not  our  sadness, 
that  can  do  honor  to  God."* 

This  is  further  commended  to  us  by  the  reflection,  that 
rejoicing  in  God  is  an  important  means  of  spiritual 
str-ength  and  'progress.  It  was  no  figure  of  speech  which 
Nehemiah  used  when  he  kindly  reproved  the  weeping  of 
the  people,  and  said  to  them,  '  The  joy  of  the  Lord  is 
your  strength.'  Joy  is  always  an  element  of  strength. 
You  see  it  in  every  walk  of  life.  A  joyous  spirit  is  a 
well-spring  of  energy,  even  though  it  have  no  connection 
with  religion.  Look  at  the  merchant  who  carries  it  into 
the  details  of  a  complex  and  extended  business ;  at  the 

*  Vinet. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  51  . 

mechanic  who  carries  it  into  his  daily  toil ;  at  the  trav- 
eller who  cheers  himself  with  it  as  he  crosses  mountains 
and  deserts.  How  much  a  joyous  spirit  lightens  their 
burdens  and  gives  elasticity  to  their  steps!  It  is  the 
same  in  social  life.  This  temper  is  very  apt  to  indicate 
energy  of  character, — not,  necessarily,  energy  directed 
by  the  highest  wisdom,  but  still  a  capacity  for  exertion 
which  is  sure  to  bring  something  to  pass. 

If  this  be  so  with  natural  joy,  the  'joy  of  the  Lord' 
cannot  be  a  less  efficient  principle.  Nothing  drinks  up 
the  spirits  like  a  sense  of  God's  displeasure.  It  is  a  palsy 
to  all  the  powers  of  the  soul.  But  the  sense  of  his 
love  invigorates  every  faculty  and  stimulates  to  the  high- 
est exertion.  That  is  a  striking  passage  in  the  fifty-first 
Psalm,  as  true  to  philosophy  as  it  is  to  religious  experi- 
ence:— "  Restore  unto  me  the  joy  of  thy  salvation  ;  and 
uphold  me  with  thy  free  spirit.  Then  will  I  teach  trans- 
gressors thy  ways,  and  sinners  shall  be  converted  unto 
thee."  His  consciousness  of  guilt  overwhelmed  him. 
He  lay  prostrate  in  the  dust.  But  if  it  should  please 
God  to  speak  peace  to  his  conscience  and  restore  the  joy 
he  had  lost,  then  he  would  resume  his  neglected  labors 
for  the  salvation  of  sinners,  and  they  would  be  converted 
unto  God.  So  it  is  with  all  Christians.  When  your 
hope  of  heaven  is  clear  and  undoubted,  and  you  are  re- 
joicing in  the  Lord,  you  serve  him  with  alacrity.  You 
are  ready  for  any  work  to  which  he  may  appoint  you. 
You  go  about  it,  not  as  a  task,  but  as  a  privilege.  If 
you  are  cheered  by  the  sympathy  of  your  fellow-Chris- 
tians, well  and  good.  But  this  is  not  your  main  reliance. 
There  is  a  spring  of  activity  within  which  would  impel 
you  onward  even  if  there  were  no  human  eye  to  see,  and 
no  earthly  tongue  to  applaud,  your  labors. 


52  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

This  is  a  great  truth  we  arc  cleahng  with.  The  con- 
stant inquiry  is,  How  can  we  make  Christianity  more 
effective  in  its  warfare  with  sin  and  error  ^  Let  Chris- 
tians "rejoice  in  the  Lord  ;  "  and  the  problem  is  resolved. 
Properly  regarded,  his  service  demands  this  spirit.  It  is 
not  a  bondage,  but  perfect  freedom.  '  My  yoke  is  easy, 
and  my  burden  is  light.'  The  Saviour  has  made  full 
provision  for  the  protection  and  comfort  of  all  who  en- 
gage in  his  service,  without  requiring  them  to  wait  for 
their  crowns  of  glory.  Just  in  proportion  as  they  im- 
bibe the  true  spirit  of  disciplesbip,  will  their  AN'ork  yield 
them  genuine  satisfaction  ;  and  this,  in  turn,  will  aug- 
ment their  capacity  for  useful  effort.  Among  the  crowd 
of  active  Christians  who  adorn  our  churches  there  are 
very  many  who  do  "rejoice  in  the  Lord."  And  this  not 
only  increases  their  strength,  but  makes  them  welcome 
in  many  a  circle  where,  if  they  were  of  a  morose  or  mo- 
ping spirit,  the  door  would  be  closed  against  them. 

This  suggests  as  another  reason  for  cultivating  this  tem- 
per, that  2ce  ovoe  it  to  tlie  world.  Our  Saviour  has  said, 
"Ye  are  the  salt  of  the  earth."  "Ye  are  the  light  of 
the  world."  We  have  no  right  to  give  the  world  a 
mistaken  idea  of  religion.  They  are  more  apt  to  form 
their  conceptions  of  it  from  the  characters  and  conduct 
of  professing  Christians  than  from  the  Bible.  And 
when  we  so  carry  ourselves  as  to  produce  the  impres- 
sion that  Christianity  is  all  gloom,  we  do  both  them  and 
religion  a  serious  wrong. 

There  is,  to  be  sure,  a  vicious  mode  of  guarding  against 
this  error,  viz.,  by  following  the  world  into  its  gaieties. 
You  mean  by  doing  this  to  show  that  religion  is  no 
patron  of  asceticism.     But  what  right  have  you  to  pre- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  53 

tend,  especially  in  dealing  with  the  unconverted,  that 
religion  is  the  patron  of  their  frivolous  amusements'? 
To  rejoice  in  their  forbidden  pleasures,  is  a  very  different 
thing  from  rejoicing  in  the  Lord.  Each  necessarily  ex- 
cludes the  other.  The  one  is  a  sin  ;  the  other  is  a  duty. 
If  you  mean  to  help  the  world,  you  must  perform  the 
duty,  not  practise  the  sin.  It  is  no  real  help  to  them  to 
show  them  that  religion  will  let  you  go  wherever  they 
go,  and  do  whatever  they  do.  For  if  this  be  so,  why 
should  they  change  ?  What  they  need  is,  to  be  assured 
that  religion  has  joys  which  are  as  superior,  as  they  are 
unlike,  to  theirs.  Show  them  that  it  has  made  you  hap- 
pier than  you  ever  were  before,  and  that  without  being 
indebted  to  their  pleasures.  Do  this,  and  you  will  be 
helping  them. 

You  will  not  infer  from  this  that  the  Christian  must 
sever  himself  from  all  worldly  enjoyments.  Far  from  it. 
Christian  joy  is  not  thus  exacting.  "  Fleavenly  in  its 
nature,  it  blends  vv'ith  terrestrial  joys  without  losing 
aught  of  its  purity,  and  without  taking  from  them  aught 
of  their  artless  simplicity.  The  Christian,  just  before  he 
is  nearest  to  heaven,  knows  best  how  this  world  is  to  be 
enjoyed.  The  enjoyments  of  nature,  of  art,  of  society, 
appear  to  have  trusted  him  with  their  most  profound 
secret.  The  more  his  joy  is  serious  and  calm,  the  greater 
the  certainty  it  is  true.  The  more  it  is  envied,  the  greater 
desire  will  be  felt  to  ascertain  its  source.  Thus,  the 
Christian's  happiness  makes  converts  to  the  Gospel." 
But  he  can  make  no  converts  by  participating  in  those 
pleasures  which  are  forbidden  him.  The  fatal  tendency 
of  this  is,  to  wed  the  careless  to  their  idols,  and  hurry 
them  on  to  ruin. 


54  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

It  were  easy  to  multiply  arguments  on  this  point. 
They  will  be  implied,  if  not  stated,  in  what  I  have  fur- 
ther to  say  by  way  of  commending  the  text  to  you  as 
your  motto  for  the  year.  A  twelve-month  since  it  was 
proposed  to  you  as  your  talisman,  '  The  Lord  is  at  hand !' 
This  has  proved  a  prophetic  announcement  with  some 
who  were  with  us  then.  The  rest  of  us  are  spared  to 
stand  upon  the  threshold  of  a  New  Year.  Like  each  one 
that  has  preceded  it,  the  year  comes  with  its  mercies 
and  trials,  its  smiles  and  its  frowns.  It  will  bring  un- 
looked-for blessings,  and  unexpected  sorrows.  No  one 
amongst  us  may  presume  to  forecast  the  specific  changes 
it  has  in  store  for  him.  But  the  text  may  serve,  by  God's 
blessing,  to  prepare  us  for  whatever  He  is  preparing  for 
us,  and  to  enter  upon  a  new  period  with  the  feeling,  'I 
will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.' 

This  resolution  may  be  commended  to  those  who  seem 
least  to  require  it — the  in'osperous.  No  doubt  you  are 
accustomed  to  rejoice.  But  it  is  rejoicing  in  God  which 
he  requires  of  you.  And  surely  he  has  a  right  to  require 
it.  How  is  it  that  you  are  rich,  while  others  are  poor] 
That  health  reigns  in  your  household,  while  others  are 
smitten  with  disease'?  That  the  hours  which  come  to  so 
many  surcharged  with  sorrow,  come  to  you  freighted 
with  mercies'?  The  Giver  of  all  good  is  making  this 
appeal  to  your  gratitude.  Do  not  rest  in  his  gifts ;  but 
look  through  them  to  their  Author.  If  you  rejoice  in 
them,  as  you  may  and  should,  yet  rejoice  chiefly  in 
Him.  For  if  such  are  the  streams,  what  must  the  Foun- 
tain be'?  Then  only  can  you  derive  the  full  measure  of 
enjoyment  from  them,  when  you  receive  them  as  the 
fruits  of  his  bounty,  and  love  and  serve  Him  with  a 
grateful  heart. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  55 

There  is  a  sad  ingratitude  and  selfishness  which  follows 
too  often  in  the  train  of  prosperity.  The  daily  incense 
goes  up  from  more  cottages  than  palaces.  The  crust  of 
bread  elicits  a  hymn  of  praise;  the  table  groaning  under 
its  costly  viands  becomes  a  daily  holocaust  to  appetite  and 
pride.  Men  are  not  content  unless  they  can  banish  God 
from  their  pleasures.  Willing  enough  to  accept  his  gifts, 
they  seem  to  feel  that  in  so  far  as  they  have  to  acknowl- 
edge him,  it  is  to  that  extent  a  practical  deduction  from 
the  true  enjoyment  of  life.  Strange  they  should  not  con- 
sider that  no  form  or  scene  of  happiness  can  be  lasting, 
which  excludes  Him  from  whom  alone  all  happiness 
flows. 

This,  indeed,  is  an  urgent  reason  why  you  should 
adopt  the  maxim,  'I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.'  Now  you 
have  other  means  of  enjoyment.  But  you  may  not  have 
them  long.  This  very  year  may  see  you  stripped  of  your 
property.  Or  it  may  see  your  family  broken  and  shat- 
tered by  death.  Or,  worse  than  poverty  or  death,  it  may 
see  some  of  your  blessings  turned  into  implements  of  tor- 
ture which  Mill  embitter  your  days.  What  you  need, 
what  every  one  needs,  is  a  portion  which  is  exposed  to 
none  of  these  casualties;  a  joy  which,  being  not  of  earth, 
nothing  earthly  can  take  from  you.  And  this  you  will 
have  only  when  you  can  say,  'I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.' 

But  you  will  all  feel  that  the  real  difficulty  lies  in 
another  direction.  'It  is  well  enough,'  you  are  ready  to 
say,  'to  bid  the  prosperous  rejoice,  but  is  it  not  a  mockery 
to  address  this  exhortation  to  the  sorroiDful  f 

To  those  who  know  of  no  joy  but  that  of  the  world, 
it  must  seem  a  mockery.  But  Christian  joy  is  a  differ- 
ent emotion — different  in  its  source,  different  in  its  ali- 


56  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

ment,  different  in  its  expression.  To  invite  the  sorrow- 
ful to  join  in  any  demonstration  of  boisterous  mirth,  or 
even  to  be  present  at  ordinary  scenes  of  festivity,  would 
be  rude  and  insulting.  But  the  joy  which  enters  into 
the  believer's  heritage  is  a  hidden  principle  lodged  in  the 
depths  of  the  heart  by  the  Divine  Spirit,  and  nourished 
there  by  his  own  Almighty  hand.  It  does  not  imply — 
for  that  is  not  its  nature — a  state  of  constant  excitement, 
an  effervescence  and  transport  of  the  animal  feelings. 
This  is  the  familiar  idea  of  joy  among  ^he  votaries  of 
worldly  pleasure.  But  religious  joy  is  something  deep, 
pure,  calm,  abiding ;  not  without  its  ebbs  and  flows,  its 
raptures  and  depressions,  but,  on  the  ^yhole,  tranquil 
and  serious, — '  a  holy  joy,'  as  it  is  wtII  expressed. 

This  being  its  nature,  there  is  no  incongruity  in  call- 
ing even  upon  those  Christians  who  have  much  cause  for 
sadness  to  adopt  the  resolution,  'I  will  rejoice  in  the 
Lord.'  In  one  aspect,  this  may  be  affirmed  of  Christians 
generally.  For  the  whole  Christian  life  is  a  struggle 
with  sin,  and  sin  must  needs  bring  sorrow  in  its  train. 
But  this  conflict  does  not  necessarily  extinguish  the  be- 
liever's joy.  The  sacred  flame  may  continue  to  glow 
upon  his  altar,  though  exposed  to  the  beating  storm  of 
adversity  and  the  fiercer  blasts  of  his  own  passions.  No 
Christian  "was  ever  placed  in  circumstances  to  test  this 
more  thoroughly  than  the  great  apostle  of  the  Gentiles. 
It  was  the  high  privilege  conferred  upon  him — he  treats 
it  as  a  privilege — that  he  was  appointed  to  endure  a 
greater  variety  and  amount  of  suffering  for  his  Master, 
than  almost  any  other  of  whom  we  read.  There  are 
touching  allusions  in  his  epistles  which  show  that  he  was 
no  Stoic  under  these  trials.     It  is  apparent  that  he  was 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  57 

not  a  stranger  to  despondency.  But  in  the  main,  the 
Avhole  tone  of  his  writings,  like  the  whole  tenor  of  his 
life,  is  that  of  an  eminently  happy  and  joyful  man.  It 
is  one  of  the  series  of  paradoxes  in  which  he  has  summed 
up  his  own  Christian  life,  'as  sorrowful,  yet  ahociys 
rejoicing.''  It  is  scarcely  possible  to  think  of  him, 
whether  preaching  to  a  popular  assembly,  or  pleading 
before  kings ;  whether  hastening  from  city  to  city  with 
the  everlasting  Gospel,  or  shut  up  in  a  dungeon ; 
whether  sitting  in  council  with*  the  apostolic  college,  or 
comforting  his  companions  amidst  the  horrors  of  a  ship- 
wreck ;  except  as  a  man  imbued  with  a  heavenly  serenity 
and  joy,  the  fitting  counterpart  of  his  lofty  intrepidity 
and  heroism. 

Nor  was  this  any  prerogative  of  the  apostleship.  It 
is  for  other  Christians  also  to  say — thousands  of  them 
have  said  it — 'As  sorrowful,  yet  always  rejoicing.' 

I  am  not  counselling  you  to  attempt  an  impossibility. 
Still  less  am  I  inculcating  an  insensibility  to  trials.  He 
who  sends  these  trials  means  that  they  shall  be  felt.  It 
is  his  own  injunction,  '  Hear  ye  the  rod,  and  who  hath 
appointed  it.'  But  He  designs,  no  less,  that  his  people 
shall  trust  in  him,  and  rejoice  in  him.  Trouble  is  one 
of  the  messengers  He  sends  to  recall  them  to  him  : — "  In 
their  affliction,  they  will  seek  me  early."  To  rejoice  in 
Him  at  such  a  time — when  the  heart  is  pierced  with 
sorrow,  and  his  irresistible  Providence  is  veiled  in  clouds 
and  darlvness — is  one  of  the  noblest  tributes  which  can 
be  paid  to  his  wisdom  and  faithfulness.  And  why  should 
it  not  be  so  \  Viewed  from  that  elevation  to  which  a 
vigorous  faith  exalts  the  soul,  these  trials  and  temptations 
are  all  transitory.     They  cannot  disturb  the  Christian's 


58  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

portion,  nor  invalidate  his  title  to  it.  It  still  remains 
true  that  he  has  an  Almighty  Saviour  ;  that  the  blessings 
of  the  unchangeable  covenant  are  his ;  and  that  there  is 
a  crown  of  glory  awaiting  him.  Let  him,  then,  rejoice 
in  the  Lord. 

This  counsel  is  equally  suited  to  occasions  of  public 
calamity  and  to  those  of  private  sorrow.  It  was  with  a 
prime  reference  to  these  the  prophet  used  the  words. 
The  passage  is  too  beautiful  not  to  be  familiar  to  every 
reader  of  the  Bible.  'Although  the  fig-tree  shall  not 
blossom,  neither  shall  fruit  be  in  the  vines ;  the  labour 
of  the  olive  shall  fail,  and  the  fields  shall  yield  no  meat ; 
the  flock  shall  be  cut  off  from  the  fold,  and  there  shall 
be  no  herd  in  the  stalls ;  yet  I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord, 
I  will  joy  in  the  God  of  my  salvation.'  It  may  be  that 
we  shall  have  sad  occasion  for  this  scripture  in  its  bear- 
ing upon  Divine  judgments  before  this  year  closes. 
What  may  be  in  reserve  for  our  beloved  country  we  know 
not.  The  omens  at  present  are  threatening  enough  to 
drive  every  Christian  to  the  throne  of  grace ;  for  that  is 
the  source  whence  help  must  come,  if  it  comes  at  all. 
But  whatever  may  happen,  the  believer  has  his  resource : — 
'I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.' 

This,  then,  is  the  temper  with  which  it  befits  us  to  enter 
upon  the  opening  year,  and  this  the  spirit  we  should 
strive  to  carry  into  all  its  engagements  and  businesses,  all 
its  sorrows  and  pleasures: — 'I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.' 
It  will  be  our  wisdom  and  duty  to  cherish  more  and  more 
the  conviction  that  we  must  seek  our  happiness  in  God. 
Let  us  acknowledge  Him  more  in  our  plans.  Let  us 
remember  Him  in  our  ordinary  occupations,  in  our  social 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  59 

recreations,  and  in  our  hours  of  solitude.  Let  it  be  the 
habit  of  our  lives  to  trust  in  Him,  to  seek  his  favor  as  the 
chiefest  of  blessings,  and  to  rejoice  in  Him  as  'the  God  of 
our  salvation.'  Could  we  but  enter  upon  the  year  with 
this  equipment  of  celestial  temper,  it  would  come  to  us 
richly  freighted  with  joy,  and  the  pleasant  greeting  of  "A 
happy  New  Year,"  would  have  a  fulness  of  meaning 
which  we  rarely  attach  to  it. 

Need  I  say  how  sincerely  I  pray  that  you  may  all  ex- 
perience its  power  and  preciousness ?  All  of  you!  It 
is  one  of  the  painful  reflections  of  this  hour,  that  there 
are  those  here  who  have  never  even  begun  to  'Rejoice  in 
the  Lord;' — to  whom,  indeed,  the  very  phrase  may  be 
unmeaning,  if  it  is  not  positively  disagreeable.  Alas,  my 
dear  people,  to  what  end  are  you  living'?  What  record 
have  your  past  years  borne  to  the  bar  of  God'?  And  of 
what  value  is  all  the  'happiness'  you  have,  up  to  this 
time,  garnered  from  the  world "?  Is  it  too  much  to  be- 
lieve that  there  must  be  those  among  you  who  are  dis- 
satisfied with  themselves  and  with  the  illusive  joys  they 
have  hitherto  pursued"?  Is  it  too  much  to  hope  that 
there  may  be  some  who  would  fain  begin  a  New  Year 
with  a  new  life"?  Let  me  entreat  you  not  to  stifle  the 
secret  longing.  It  may  be  the  still,  small  voice  of  the 
Spirit  inviting  you  to  the  skies.  It  is  a  period  which  in- 
clines us  to  reflection — this  shadowy  line  between  the  Old 
Year  and  the  New.  And  here,  as  you  are  framing  your 
plans,  give  place  at  length  to  God  and  Redemption. 
Aspire  to  something  higher  and  nobler  than  these  earth- 
born  joys.  Put  away  the  sins  which  have  so  long  sepa- 
rated you  from  God  and  from  happiness.     Come  to  the 


60  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

fountain  which  alone  can  cleanse  you.  And  resolve  in 
God's  strength — '  I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord.'  Thus  shall 
you  find  rest  unto  your  souls;  and  through  the  long 
cycles  of  eternity,  this  year  shall  be  of  blessed  memory  as 
the  year  of  your  espousals  to  Christ. 


1861. 


lY. 


''THIS  IS  MY  FRIEND." 

SONG  OF  SOLOMON  v.  16. 


What  better  could  I  do  on  this  New  Year's  Sabbath, 
than  offer  to  you  as  your  motto  for  the  year  this  brief 
and  beautiful  statement  from  the  Book  of  Canticles'?  It 
is  the  language  of  the  Church,  the  Lamb's  Bride,  con- 
cerning the  Bridegroom — her  and  our  Lord : — "  This  is 
my  beloved  and  this  is  my  friend,  O  daughters  of  Jeru- 
salem !"  There  is  no  believer  here  who  may  not  make 
this  language  his  own.  An  unspeakable  privilege  it  is, 
to  be  allowed  to  use  it.  And  doubtless  before  the  year 
is  over,  some  of  us  may  have  occasion  to  prize  this  privi- 
lege even  more  highly  than  we  do  now. 

It  were  very  commonplace  to  address  you  on  the 
advantages  and  delights  of  friendship.  But  it  can  never 
be  unwelcome  to  you  to  hear  of  that  Friend  who  is  here 
brought  to  our  notice.  Let  me  talk  with  you  about  Him, 
as  friends  are  wont  to  talk  about  an  absent  friend — ^^mil- 
iarly  and  freely. 

Yet  the  use  of  this  word  absent  must  remind  us  that 
there  is  something  very  peculiar  m  his  character;  foj  He 

(61) 


Q2  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

is  never  absent.  It  is  one  of  the  unavoidable  trials  of  all 
earthly  attachments,  that  they  involve  occasional  sepa- 
rations. In  innumerable  cases  these  separations  are  very 
frequent  or  very  protracted,  and  aggravated  by  the  end- 
less hazards  to  which  life  and  health  are  exposed.  When 
two  friends — or,  if  you  will,  an  affectionate  family — are 
restored  to  each  other,  with  the  prospect  of  remaining 
together  for  a  long  while,  it  seems  to  make  their  happi- 
ness almost  complete.  But  a  final  separation  must  come ; 
and  in  all  ordinary  instances  it  is  preceded  by  numerous 
temporary  absences. 

With  Jesus  of  Nazareth  this  cannot  occur.  From  this 
Friend  you  not  only  may  not,  but  cannot  sever  yourself. 
A  change  of  residence  or  of  circumstances — a  journey — 
a  sickness — is  of  no  moment.  He  is  with  his  friends  as 
much  at  one  time,  or  in  one  place,  as  another: — always 
a  Friend  at  hand. 

Every  one  will  perceive  what  this  implies  in  respect 
to  his  7rinJ>;  and  nature.  There  are  various  paths  by 
which  we  may  ascend  to  the  same  sublime  truth.  But 
it  flows  inevitably  from  the  one  point  we  are  now  con- 
sidering, that  Jesus  Christ  must  be  Omnipresent;  and  if 
Omnipresent,  he  cannot  be  a  mere  creature.  There  can 
be  but  One  Being  who  is  ever  with  us  and  with  millions 
besides  in  this  land,  and  in  other  lands,  and  all  over  the 
globe.  So  that  in  the  Friend  who  is  never  absent  from 
him,  the  Christian  also  has  a  friend  who  is  able  to  take 
care  of  him  in  all  possible  circumstances. 

If  a  person  were  called  to  traverse  a  countr}^  filled 
with  anarchy  and  violence,  there  is  nothing  he  would 
desire  so  much  as  the  company  of  some  one  of  such  rank 
and  authority  as  to  insure  him  protection.     Such  a  situa- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  (53 

tion  is  but  an  inadequate  type  of  our  condition  in  this 
world.  It  is  a  world  broken  away  from  its  allegiance. 
It  is  in  arms  not  only  against  its  Prince,  but  against 
all  W'ho  attempt  to  serve  him.  Its  resources  are  too  vast, 
and  its  hostility  is  too  malignant,  to  be  successfully  resisted 
even  by  the  most  resolute  of  the  race,  in  their  own 
strength.  They  w^ho  have  no  succor  from  without  must 
inevitably  succumb. 

To  state  the  case  in  other  language: — our  condition 
here  is  such  as  to  warrant  no  hope  of  deliverance  if  we 
are  left  to  ourselves.  Take  the  very  best  of  the  race — 
those  who  have  escaped  from  the  servitude  of  sin,  and 
'  made  good  progress  in  the  Christian  life — what  can  they 
do  in  a  conflict  like  this?  What  wdth  indwelling  de- 
pravity, the  enticements  of  the  world,  and  the  machina- 
tions of  Satan,  they  would  be  vanquished  as  fatally  as 
David  and  Peter  were.  They  would  find  their  chains 
re-imposed,  and  their  captivity  renewed  with  stronger 
bolts  and  bars  than  ever. 

Thanks  be  to  God,  these  dangers  are  provided  for. 
The  believer  has  a  Friend  to  accompany  him,  who  is 
able  to  defend  him.  That  may  be  truly  said  of  Him, 
which  was  impiously  said  of  Simon  the  Sorcerer,  'This 
man  is  the  great  power  of  God.'  This  very  phrase, 
indeed,  is  applied  to  Him  by  the  Divine  Spirit:  "Christ, 
the  power  of  God."  And  He  himself  challenges  the  dis- 
tinction as  his  OAvn,  when  he  says,  'All  power  is  given  to 
me  in  heaven  and  in  earth.' 

How  this  lifts  the  Saviour  up  infinitely  above  all  other 
friends !  We  are  none  of  us  without  friends  in  whose 
afl'ection  we  have  entire  confidence.  We  know  that 
they  love  us  with  a  sincerity  and  a  devotion  which  are 


(34  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

beyond  suspicion.  We  feel  assured  that  they  would  do 
anything  in  their  power  to  help  us  in  a  time  of  trouble. 
But  witliout  disparaging  their  fidelity  and  kindness,  we 
cannot  forget  that  their  capacity  to  relieve  us  in  sorrow 
or  danger  is  limited.  When  they  have  done  their  ut- 
most, the  weight  still  presses,  and  the  heart  still  bleeds. 
But  with  Him  who  has  '  all  power '  it  is  otherwise.  He 
can  go  down  into  the  depths  and  take  the  gauge  of  the 
trouble  that  is  crushing  us ;  and  then  say  to  tlie  despond- 
ing soul  in  tones  which  must  be  heard,  'Trust  in  the 
Lord  for  ever;  for  in  the  Lord  Jehovah  is  everlasting 
strength.'  Nor  does  it  matter  from  what  quarter  the 
trial  may  come.  His  prerogative  extends  alike  over  the 
worlds  of  matter  and  of  mind ;  as  well  over  '  foul  spirits ' 
as  over  the  lawless  passions  of  the  heart.  And  the  hum- 
blest Christian  may  confidently  say  of  him,  'He  is  my 
refuge  and  my  fortress:  my  God;  in  Him  will  I  trust.' 

Omnipotence  and  ubiquity,  important  as  they  are,  are 
not  the  only  qualities  which  commend  to  us  our  Heav- 
enly Friend.  It  is  one  of  that  golden  cluster  of  titles  by 
which  he  was  heralded  seven  centuries  before  his  advent, 
'He  shall  be  called  .  .  .  CQunsellor.^  In  our  present 
condition  we  need  as  much  a  wise  friend  as  a  powerful 
one.  And  the  one  attribute  is  as  often  wanting  as  the 
other.  A  friend  may  be  very  sincere  and  faithful  who 
is  in  no  way  remarkable  for  wisdom.  Some  of  the  truest 
friends  come  short  here.  They  may  be  pleasant  com- 
panions. Their  sympathy  may  be  grateful  to  us.  They 
may  have  that  very  rare  '  power  of  silence'  which  enables 
them  to  forbear  repeating  what  is  said  to  them.  And 
yet  as  advisers,  they  are  but  broken  reeds.  From  a 
.natural   debility  of  judgment,  or   simply  through    the 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  65 

blinding  influence  of  their  affections,  they  can  give  only 
such  coinisel  as  they  suppose  will  fall  in  with  the  inclina- 
tions of  their  friend.  You  cannot  distrust  their  love; 
but  you  may  well  say  to  them,  what  the  apostle  said  to 
his  faithful  Philippians: — "This  I  pray,  that  your  love 
may  abound  yet  more  and  more  in  hnowledge  and  in  all 
judgment.'''' 

But  not  so  with  the  Friend  the  text  extols.  As  he  is 
the  'power  of  God,'  so  is  he  the  'wisdom  of  God.'  His 
own  language  is,  '  Counsel  is  mine,  and  sound  wisdom ; 
I  am  understanding;  I  have  strength.'  He  knows  every- 
thing. With  an  eye  that  sweeps  through  the  universe, 
he  sees  at  a  glance  all  the  agencies  and  influences  which 
can  affect  his  friends  for  good  or  ill.  He  perceives  at 
once  every  plot  which  is  contrived  for  their  injury;  every 
snare  spread  for  their  feet ;  every  arm  lifted  to  strike 
them.  He  is  acquainted  with  the  minutest  incidents  in 
the  allotment  of  each  one  of  them.  There  is  no  wrong 
they  suffer,  no  danger  they  fear,  no  secret  grief  that 
preys  upon  their  spirits,  no  burden  whatever  of  sin  or 
woe  they  bear,  which  is  not  known  to  him.  And  he 
knows,  no  less,  just  what  to  do  for  them.  It  may  not 
be  precisely  what  they  would  choose,  but  it  is  what  they 
most  need.  Unlike  an  earthly  friend,  he  is  able  to  take 
in  all  the  surroundings  of  the  case;  and  to  consider  as 
well  the  ultimate  result  as  the  immediate  effect  of  par- 
ticular measures.  And  hence  the  deliverance  or  the 
strength  he  imparts,  is  uniformly  designed  to  promote, 
if  not  the  present  ease,  at  least  the  future  and  perma- 
nent well-being  of  his  people.  For  in  him  are  hid  all 
the  treasures  of  wisdom  and   knowledge:    and  such  a 


(55  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

friend  cannot  but  be  the  very  "Counsellor"  we  require 
amidst  the  perplexities  and  conflicts  of  life. 

This  will  be  still  more  apparent,  when  it  is  considered, 
that  He  is  a  friend  who  loves  his  people  with  a  Jove 
''passing  hno idedge. ' 

The  strength  of  Christ's  affection  for  his  people,  is  not 
a  matter  of  conjecture.  Nor  does  the  proof  of  it  lie 
mainly  in  his  own  protestations,  convincing  as  those 
would  be.  It  is  embodied  in  acts,  which  challenge  the 
wonder  and  adoration  of  the  universe.  The  entire  Bible 
is  a  revelation  of  his  love  to  them.  It  originated  in  the 
essential  benevolence  of  his  nature,  eternal  ages  before 
our  sphere  was  created.  Even  then,  in  the  distant  pros- 
pect of  man's  fall,  he  engaged  to  ransom  him,  and  his 
"delights  were  with  the  sons  of  men."  In  the  fulness 
of  time,  this  love  assumed  to  itself  a  human  form ;  and 
there  was  no  depth  of  humiliation  and  of  suffering  to 
which  it  did  not  stoop  in  order  to  snatch  its  endangered 
objects  from  destruction.  '  Greater  love  hath  no  man 
than  this,  that  a  man  lay  down  his  life  for  his  friends.' 
And  this  proof  has  lie  given  us  of  his  love.  Nay,  he 
has  gone  beyond  this,  for  "  even  while  we  were  yet 
sinners  [and  enemies]  did  Christ  die  for  us."  Had  he 
been  simply  a  creature  of  angelic  rank,  this  could  not 
have  failed  to  produce  a  profound  impression  upon  all 
holy  beings.  But  what  tongue  shall  attempt  to  portray 
this  event  as  the  voluntary  sacrifice  of  God's  own  Son — 
'the  Brightness  of  the  Father's  glory  and  the  Express 
Image  of  his  Person!'  It  is  the  exalted  rank,  the  eter- 
nal Deity,  of  the  Saviour,  which  invests  the  transaction 
with  its  sublime  interest,  and  makes  it  so  impossible  to 
describe  it. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  67 

The  believer  exclaims,  '  This  is  my  Friend  :' — and  he 
bids  yon  roll  back  the  ages  until  you  antedate  the  course 
of  time,  and  see  the  Second  Person  of  the  adorable 
Trinity  entering  into  a  covenant  with  the  Father  to 
redeem  a  rebellious  race  not  yet  summoned  into  being. 
Again  he  exclaims,  '  This  is  my  Friend  !' — and  he  takes 
you  to  the  little  village  of  Bethlehem,  to  that  manger 
which  presents  to  you  the  most  wonderful  sight  the  sun 
— or  any  one  of  the  myriad-suns  of  the  firmament — had 
ever  shone  upon,  an  infant  child  bearing  the  Name  ot 
names,  "  Immanuel,"  "  God  with  us."  He  cries  again, 
"  This  is  my  Friend !" — and  he  leads  you  to  Calvary, 
and  shows  you  that  spectacle  which  made  the  sun  "  shut 
his  glories  in,"  convulsed  the  earth  to  its  centre,  and 
even  stirred  the  slumbering  dead.  Once  more  he  ex- 
claims, '  This  is  my  Friend  !' — and  he  conducts  you  on 
the  wings  of  faith  up  to  the  heaven  of  heavens,  and 
points  you  to  '  the  Lamb  in  the  midst  of  the  throne,'  the 
object  of  universal  homage  and  gratitude. 

"  The  head  that  once  was  crowned  with  thorns, 

Is  crowned  with  glory  now  ; 
A  royal  diadem  adorns 

The  miglity  victor's  brow. 
The  highest  place  that  heaven  affords, 

Is  his  by  sovereign  right ; 
The  King  of  Kings,  and  Lord  of  Lords, 

And  Heaven's  Eternal  Light!" 

Yes,  tJiis  is  the  believer's  Friend.  And  these  are  but 
successive  demonstrations  of  the  boundless  love  he  bears 
to  his  people.  From  eternity  his  heart  was  with  them. 
It  was  with  them  through  all  his  pilgrimage  of  sorrow 
and  suffering  in  our  world.     It  is  with  them  still  in  his 


68  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

glory ;  for  he  "  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  them," 
and  he  is  "Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church."  Well 
may  the  apostle  say  of  this  love,  "it  passeth  knowledge." 

It   is   another   conspicuous   attribute    of   our   Divine 
Friend,  that  he  is  full  of  tenderness  and  sympathy.  . 

There  is  many  a  sterling  character  which  nevertheless 
lacks  this  pleasant  embellishment.  We  have  all  had 
friends  upon  whose  attachment  we  could  place  implicit 
reliance,  who  might  not  always  have  the  gentlest  way  of 
showing  it.  It  is  one  of  the  marvels  which  cluster 
around  the  Saviour's  character,  that  it  combines  the 
grandeur  and  omnipotence  of  a  God  with  more  than  a 
mother's  tenderness.  There  is  something  extremely 
beautiful  and  touching  in  the  imagery  Christ  employs 
in  unfolding  his  commission.  "  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord 
God  is  upon  me,  because  the  Lord  hath  appointed  me  to 
preach  good  tidings  unto  the  meek ;  he  hath  sent  me  to 
bind  up  the  broken-hearted,  to  proclaim  liberty  to  the 
captives,  and  the  opening  of  the  prison  to  them  that  are 
bound."  These  prophetic  strains  pass  into  history  in 
the  New  Testament.  He  stands  before  us  there,  the 
friend  of  publicans  and  sinners.  He  opens  his  lips,  and 
it  is  to  utter  in  the  ears  of  that  proud  and  scornful  age 
strange  words  like  these : — "  Blessed  are  the  poor  in 
spirit !"  "  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn !"  "  Blessed  are 
the  meek !"  We  fall  into  his  train,  and  for  three  years  we 
are  living  among  the  objects  of  pity — the  poor,  the  sick, 
and  the  suffering,  who  flock  around  him  for  relief.  Nor 
are  they  more  ready  to  come,  than  he  is  to  succor  them. 
Whether  it  be  a  group  of  miserable  lepers,  or  a  blind 
man  by  the  wayside,  or  a  ruler  of  the  synagogue  inter- 
ceding for  a  daughter,  or  a  Syro-Phenician  mother  on 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  69 

the  same  anxious  errand,  his  ear  responds  to  every  ap- 
peal, and  his  hand  is  stretched  forth  in  its  unwearied 
ministry  of  mercy.  We  claim,  then,  that  he  is  a  Friend 
no  less  remarkable  for  his  tenderness  and  pity,  than  for 
his  power  and  majesty. 

To  view  our  Lord  in  one  more  only  of  the  many  aspects 
of  his  friendship  to  his  people,  he  is  a  fcdtJifuI  friend.  He 
is  faithful  in  that  he  will  reprove  the  errors  and  sins  of  his 
people.  This  is  one  of  the  rarest  qualities  among  friends  ; 
but  to  a  true,  ingenuous  heart,  one  of  the  most  valuable. 
"As  an  ear-ring  of  gold,  and  an  ornament  of  fine  gold,  so 
is  a  wise  reprover  upon  an  obedient  ear."  The  Saviour 
loves  his  friends  too  well  to  'suffer  sin  upon  them.' 
When  they  go  astray,  he  will  find  means,  by  his  Spirit, 
or  through  the  voice  of  conscience,  to  say  to  them,  '  I 
have  not  found  thy  works  perfect  before  God.'  '  Re- 
member from  whence  thou  art  fallen,  and  repent,  and  do 
the  first  works.'  He  is  faithful.,  again,  in  that  he  is  not 
readily  alienated  by  the  misconduct  of  his  people.  See 
how  he  bore  with  the  faults  of  his  disciples.  And  where 
has  been  the  disciple  since  who  has  not  sometimes  tested 
his  long-suffering !  Yet  he  does  not  cast  off  any.  He 
exemplifies,  rather,  the  lesson  he  inculcated  on  a  certain 
occasion,  "  I  say  unto  you,  forgive  until  seventy  times 
seven."  And,  again,  he  is  faitlfid  because,  as  this  lan- 
guage implies,  he  is  unchangeable.  Whom  he  loves,  he 
loves  to  the  end.  To  every  believer  he  says,  "  I  have 
loved  thee  with  an  everlasting  love,"  —  a  protestation 
w^hich  carries  heaven  and  eternal  glory  in  its  bosom. 

Such  are  some  of  the  attributes  which  meet  in  the 
character  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth, — ubiquity.,  j^oicer,  tcis- 
dom,  love,  tenderness,  faithfulness, — and  all  in  an  infinite 


70  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

degree.  Thrice  happy  must  he  be  who  is  able  to  say, 
"  Tliis  is  mij  Friend  ! "  And  this  may  be  said  by  every 
sincere  Christian  here — the  young-est  equally  with  the 
oldest ;  as  well  the  poorest  as  the  richest. 

In  this  friendship  there  is  something  very  wonderful, 
if  we  do  but  allow  ourselves  to  consider  it.  Other 
friendships  usually  include  three  conditions,  not  one  of 
which  is  found  here.  These  are,  equality  of  rank,  personal 
merit,  and  a  capacity,  to  some  extent,  of  reciprocating 
favors.  But  in  this  case,  the  parties  are  the  Creator 
and  the  creature  ;  the  self-existent  and  supreme  Jehovah 
and  a  worm  of  the  dust.  As  to  merit,  there  was  every- 
thing in  the  character  of  man  to  repel  affection.  Not 
only  was  he  destitute  of  that  holiness  in  which  alone  a 
holy  God  could  feel  any  complacency,  but  his  attitude 
towards  his  Maker  was  that  of  a  rebel  and  an  enemy. 
And  so  far  from  being  able  to  reciprocate  kindnesses,  his 
inevitable  and  constant  condition  was  one  of  dependence 
and  want.  He  could  be  only  a  recipient,  never  a  giver. 
Still,  the  friendship  was  established.  The  ineffable  wis- 
dom and  unquenchable  love  of  the  Redeemer,  disregard- 
ing even  obstacles  so  formidable  as  these,  stooped  to  the 
necessities  of  our  fallen  nature,  and  exalted  the  miserable 
slaves  of  sin  to  the  dignity  and  happiness  of  friends  of 
God.  Let  us  not  forget,  if  we,  any  of  us,  share  this 
high  distinction,  that  it  was  purchased  for  us  at  an  infi- 
nite cost.  But  it  is  time  to  make  a  personal  application 
of  the  text. 

In  his  address  to  the  elders  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus, 
the  apostle  said,  "  Behold,  I  go  bound  in  the  spirit  unto 
Jerusalem,  not  knowing  the  tilings  that  shall  befall  me 
there."     We  may  each  of  us  appropriate  this  language 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  71 

in  respect  to  the  year  before  us, —  not  knowing  the 
things  that  shall  befall  me.  This  impenetrable  curtain 
which  hides  the  future  from  us,  receding  only  as  we  press 
against  it,  and  refusing  us  a  glimpse  even  of  the  coming 
hour  or  the  coming  moment,  is  held  in  its  place  even 
more  by  the  hand  of  love  than  by  the  hand  of  power. 
For  whose  life  would  not  be  shrouded  in  sorrow,  if  the 
future  were  imveiled  to  him !  But  while  we  know  not 
what  will  happen,  we  know  well  what  may  happen ; 
and  this  should  be  enough  to  consecrate  in  our  affections 
the  friendship  we  are  commemorating. 

Nothing,  for  example,  is  more  probable  than  that  oc- 
casions may  arise  during  this  year,  which  will  bring  with 
them  perplexing  questions  of  duty.  Such  questions  are 
coming  up  in  the  ordinary  routine  of  life — in  the  man- 
agement of  our  families,  and  in  the  prosecution  of  busi- 
ness. They  may  come  in  graver  aspect — questions  which 
are  to  decide  our  future  plans,  or  occupations,  or  homes. 
How  easily  we  are  confounded  in  emergencies  of  this 
sort,  must  be  known  to  every  one  here.  Our  sagacity 
soon  fails  us,  even  when  aided  by  the  lights  of  experi- 
ence. And  we  are  not  certain  of  faring  any  better,  if 
we  appeal  to  our  friends.  If  we  are  able  to  say  of  Jesus 
Christ,  "This  is  my  Friend,"  there  need  be  no  dis- 
quietude. For  "is  anything  too  hard  for  the  Lordf''  It 
is  no  less  your  privilege  than  your  duty  to  go  to  Him  in 
every  exigency.  For  "if  any  of  you  lack  wisdom,  let 
him  ask  of  God,  that  giveth  to  all  men  liberally,  and  up- 
braideth  not;  and  it  shall  be  given  him."  To  do  this, 
there  is  no  toilsome  journey  to  be  made,  like  that  of  the 
Queen  of  Sheba,  when  she  went  to  see  the  glory  of 
Solomon  and  to  prove  him  with  'hard  questions.'     For, 


72  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

as  wc  have  seen,  He  is  a  Friend  never  absent.  lie  can 
be  consulted  by  any  disciple  at  any  moment.  I  do  not 
say  that  we  are  authorized  to  expect  an  instant  answer 
in  some  palpable  form.  All  that  we  affirm,  all  that  we 
can  reasonably  require,  is,  that,  to  the  humble  and  im- 
portunate petition  for  direction  He  will  ordinarily  grant  a 
gracious  answer.  By  some  impression  upon  the  mind, 
or  by  some  providential  indications,  a  ray  of  light  will 
fall  upon  the  suppliant's  path,  which  will  at  least  relieve, 
if  it  does  not  remove,  his  embarrassment. 

I  speak  of  this  habit  of  going  to  Christ  with  difficult 
questions,  as  not  only  a  privilege  but  a  duty.  For  we 
really  have  no  right  to  choose  our  course  without  looking 
to  Him.  'In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  Him.'  Except 
we  do  this,  we  have  no  share  in  the  promise  annexed, — 
'And  he  shall  direct  thy  paths.'  They  who  neglect  to 
take  counsel  of  their  best  Friend,  must  needs  fall  into 
many  an  error. 

Again,  it  is  quite  certain  that  this  year  will  be  with 
every  Christian  here,  a  year  of  conflict  icifJi  sin;  and 
with  some,  peradventure,  there  may  be  experiences  of 
spiritual  darkness  and  depression.  The  Christian  life 
involves  conflict.  It  is  in  its  very  nature  a  war  against 
sin.  The  contest  varies  with  different  persons  in  its 
concomitants ;  but  while  life  lasts,  '  the  flesh  lusteth 
against  the  spirit,  and  the  spirit  against  the  flesh.'  Nor 
is  it  a  struggle  which  any  believer  can  wage  successfully 
in  his  own  strength.  His  foes  are  too  many  and  too 
powerful  for  this.  Armed  with  the  subtlety  and  the 
malignity  of  sin,  they  are  perpetually  around  his  path. 
To  fly  from  and  to  overcome  them  are  alike  impracticable. 
One   resource   alone   he   has,  and   it   cannot   fail   him. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  73 

When  chafed,  and  wearied,  and  wounded  in  this  war- 
fare, let  him  call  to  mind  the  saying  that  is  written, 
'  This  is  my  Friend.'  Although  this  Friend  has  had  no 
experience  of  indwelling  sin,  yet  in  every  other  respect, 
not  only  has  He  been  'tempted  as  we  are,'  but  He  has 
vanquished  his  and  our  enemies.  The  plenitude  of  the 
universe  is  at  his  disposal ;  and  He  is  equally  able  and 
willing  to  sustain  his  people  in  their  conflicts. 

And  especially  will  you  need  his  help,  should  you  be 
overtaken  by  days  of  darkness  and  despondency.  For 
these  are  trials  which  not  unfrequently  bid  defiance  to 
human  sympathy.  The  soul  which  is  cast  down  under 
a  dreadful  sense  of  sin,  or  which  is  mourning  the  hidings 
of  God's  countenance,  refuses  to  be  comforted.  Yet 
there  is  one  resource  which  can  avail  you  even  in  those 
unhappy  circumstances.  If  you  can  but  open  your  heart 
to  the  assurance,  'This  is  my  Friend;'  if  you  can  but  go 
to  Him  with  your  sorrows,  you  will  find  relief  For  He 
came  to  '  bind  up  the  broken-hearted.'  And  while  his 
arm  is  mighty  to  save,  the  tenderness  of  his  nature  is  a 
sufficient  pledge  that  no  '  bruised  reed'  will  be  refused 
his  help. 

The  transition  is  natural  from  one  class  of  trials  to 
another.  That  there  are  sorrows  on  their  way  for  some 
of  us,  which  will  overtake  us  before  the  year  expires, 
may  be  safely  taken  for  granted.  In  what  form  they  are 
to  come — loss  of  property,  sickness,  bereavement,  death — 
or  where  they  are  to  alight.  He  only  knows,  who  know- 
eth  all  things.  This,  however,  is  certain.  Whenever 
they  come,  and  in  whatever  guise,  nothing  can  so  effect- 
ively disarm  them  of  their  terrors,  as  to  be  able  to  say, 

'This  is  my  Friend.'     So  the  affrighted  disciples  found 
6 


74  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

it,  when  their  little  bark  was  swept  by  the  storm  upon 
Genessareth.  So  Mary  and  Martha  found  it,  when  they 
mourned  the  death  of  their  brother.  So  many  a  believer 
you  have  known  and  loved,  has  found  it  in  sickness  and 
in  sorrow.  The  thought,  '  This  is  my  Friend,'  has  been 
like  the  balm  of  Gilead  to  their  wounds,  and  nerved 
them  to  say,  '  Not  as  I  will,  but  as  Thou  wilt !' 

For  they  well  understand,  that  this  trouble  has  not 
come  without  his  permission — and  that  He  is  a  friend 
too  wise  and  too  compassionate  to  have  sent  it  unless  it 
were  for  their  good.  They  remember,  too,  that  in  as- 
signing to  them  these  painful  experiences.  He  is  but  con- 
ducting them  along  the  path  which  his  own  sufferings 
have  sanctified.     Their  feeling  is — 

"  Christ  leads  me  through  no  darker  rooms 
Than  He  went  througli  before  ; 
He  that  unto  God's  kingdom  comes, 
Must  enter  by  this  door." 

And  they  have  the  further  conviction  that  He  is  always 
present  with  them,  for,  varying  the  figure.  He  '  sits  like  a 
refiner  and  purifier  of  silver,'  watching  the  effect  of  the 
fire  upon  the  precious  metal,  and  ready  to  withdraw  it 
as  soon  as  it  is  sufficiently  freed  from  its  base  alloy. 

In  reflections  like  these,  you  will  find  consolation  un- 
der your  trials.  For  what  can  we  not  endure,  if  we  are 
only  able  to  say,  '  It  is  my  Friend,  who  subjects  me  to 
this  affliction.  Yea,  it  is  my  best  Friend.  He  has 
shown  his  love  to  me  by  dying  for  me.  I  cannot,  will 
not,  distrust  Him  even  though  He  lead  me  by  a  path 
that  I  know  not.     For  He  knows  what  is  for  my  good. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  75 

And  I   have   his   promise,  As   thy  days,   so   shall   thy 
strength  be.' 

The  year,  again,  will  bring  its  duties.,  no  less  than  its 
trials:  —  and  here  it  will  be  wholesome  to  recall  our 
motto,  '  This  is  my  Friend.' 

We  have  seen,  though  in  a  most  imperfect  and  super- 
ficial way,  what  sort  of  a  Friend  He  is ;  what  sacrifices 
He  has  made,  what  blessings  He  has  provided,  for  us. 
What  more  becoming  than  that  we  should  daily  ask 
ourselves  the  qriestion,  'What  am  I  doing — what  can  I  do 
— to  testify  my  gratitude  to  such  a  Friend  T  If  it  were 
possible  to  secure  the  thorough  and  permanent  lodgment 
of  the  feeling  in  every  Christian  heart  here,  '  This  is  my 
Friend,'  this  church  would  require  little  exhortation  to 
duty  during  the  present  year.  When  applied  to,  as  you 
so  often  .are,  for  funds  to  aid  in  spreading  the  Gospel  or 
relieving  the  destitute,  your  response  would  be,  '  This  is 
my  Friend  whose  voice  I  hear :  the  silver  and  the  gold 
are  his,  and  I  would  not,  if  I  might,  withhold  what  is 
his  own.'  "VMien  summoned  to  engage  in  some  work  of 
Christian  philanthropy,  quite  within  the  compass  of  your 
powers,  though  involving  some  self-denial,  you  would 
say  again,  '  It  is  my  Friend  who  solicits  my  aid,  and  I 
cannot  refuse  Him,  for  He  has  said,  Inasmuch  as  ye  have 
done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these  my  brethren,  ye 
have  done  it  unto  me.'  If  again  you  should  be  admon- 
ished of  the  duty  of  attending  faithfully  upon  the  ordi- 
nances of  the  Sanctuary,  on  the  Sabbath  and  during  the 
week,  you  would  be  ready  to  say,  '  It  is  my  Friend  who 
instituted  these  services.  His  presence  hallows  them, 
his  glory  shines  through  them,  and  He  designed  them  for 
the  nurture  and  comfort  of  my  soul,  and  for  the  salvation 


76  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

of  the  perishing.  I  Avill  not  forsake  the  place  where  his 
honour  dwelleth.'  If  soHcited  to  give  your  countenance 
to  some  festivity,  which  your  conscience  whispers  to  you 
is  forbidden  ground  to  a  follower  of  Jesus,  your  frank 
and  manly  reply  would  be,  '  No,  I  could  not  approach 
my  Friend  and  ask  Him  to  go  with  me ;  I  should  but 
wound  Him  by  going  where  I  know  He  would  not  go ; 
and  it  were  base  in  me  to  purchase  a  transient  gratifica- 
tion at  the  cost  of  grieving  One  who  has  shed  his  blood 
for  me.' 

And  thus,  all  along  the  year  will  you  find  this  text  a 
ready  help  in  resolving  practical  questions  and  carrying 
you  up  toward  a  loftier  reach  of  Christian  achievement. 
Amidst  the  endless  variety  of  changes  and  circumstances 
which  the  year  may  bring  with  it,  no  situation  can  await 
you  in  which  it  will  not  be  useful  to  you  to  think  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth  with  the  feeling,  'This  is  my  Friend.' 
Whenever  this  confidence  animates  the  breast,  and  so 
long  as  it  lasts,  there  are  at  least  two  things  which  will 
not  be  neglected. 

One  of  these  is  'prayer.  Intercommunion  is  the  soul 
of  friendship.  If  we  feel  that  Christ  is  our  friend,  we 
must  desire  to  hold  fellowship  with  Him.  And  this,  in 
turn,  cements  the  bond  which  unites  us  to  Him. 

The  other  is  an  earnest  desire  and  aim  to  mahe  Christ 
hnovm  to  others.  Unlike  mere  human  friendships,  there 
is  no  room  for  selfishness  or  jealousy  here.  On  the  con- 
trary, the  proper  effect  of  being  admitted  to  Christ's 
friendship  is  to  enkindle  the  disposition  to  make  others 
partakers  of  the  same  blessing.  The  more  the  heart 
glows  under  the  radiance  of  the  sweet  conviction,  'This 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  77 

is  my  Friend,'  the  more  irrepressible  will  be  its  longings 
to  bring  other  friendless  sinners  to  his  feet. 

Such,  my  brethren,  is  the  text  I  tender  to  you  as  your 
maxim  for  the  year.  In  your  studies  and  in  your  busi- 
ness, in  your  journeys  and  in  your  recreations,  in  your 
joys  and  your  sorrows,  in  your  conflicts  and  your  con- 
solations, in  the  Church  and  in  the  world,  in  health  and 
in  sickness,  in  hfe  and  in  death,  it  will  strengthen,  sus- 
tain, and  sanctify  you,  to  remember  "This  is  my  Friend." 

Grateful  as  it  is  to  utter  words  like  these,  they  awaken 
one  very  sad  reflection.  I  cannot  but  fear  that  there  are 
some  among  my  hearers  who  will  not  venture  to  appro- 
priate this  discourse  to  themselves.  You  shrink  from 
saying,  '  This  is  my  Friend  ! '  Alas  for  you,  if  all  your 
friends  are  here  in  this  world — frail,  dying  creatures, 
like  yourselves.  For,  much  as  you  may  need  a  friend 
like  Jesus  now,  you  will  need  Him  a  thousandfold  more 
when  these  other  friends,  and  you  with  them,  have 
passed  into  eternity.  But  why  is  He  not  your  Friend  % 
Is  it  his  fault  %  Has  He  failed  to  tender  you  his  friend- 
ship] Has  He  repelled  you  when  you  have  gone  to 
Him  %  Has  He  invited  all  others  to  trust  in  Him  and 
share  his  love  and  confidence,  and  left  you  ouf?  You 
will  not  say  this.  You  have  a  monitor  within  which 
tells  you  that  the  blame  of  your  being  to-day  without 
this  Friend  lies  wholly  at  your  own  door.  It  is  his  own 
touching  lament  over  you,  '  Ye  will  not  come  unto  me 
that  ye  might  have  life  ! '  Oh,  ye  friendless  souls,  come 
to  this  Friend  of  sinners.  Do  not  spend  another  year 
without  Christ.  But  come  to  Him  now.  Begin  this 
new  year  with  a  new  life.  Looking  to  the  Almighty 
Spirit  for  grace  to  renew  and  guide  you,  humbly  and 


78  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

penitently  put  your  trust  in  the  Redeemer.  Then  will 
you  know  the  comfort  bound  up  in  those  precious  words, 
'  This  is  my  Friend  ;'  and  the  last  great  day  shall  see 
you  owned  of  Him  as  Jus  friend,  in  the  presence  of  an 
assembled  universe. 


1862. 


Y. 

''FOR  TO  ME  TO  LIVE  IS  CHRIST." 

PHILIPPIANS  I.  21. 


It  may  be  safely  said  that  the  Bible  itself  contains  no- 
thing which  would  be  more  appropriate  for  the  opening 
year  than  the  text  I  have  just  given  you.  I  may  go  fur- 
ther and  add,  that  there  is  no  greater  blessing  we  could 
receive  than  to  have  these  words  indelibly  engraved  upon 
our  hearts  to-day  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  "  To  me  to  live 
is  Christ."  Could  we  all  take  this  for  our  motto,  and 
faithfully  conform  to  it,  it  would  make  this  year  an  epoch 
in  our  lives — a  year  to  be  remembered  with  gratitude 
through  eternity.     Let  us  see  what  it  imports. 

1.  It  imports  that  Christ  is  the  Source  of  the  believer's 
life ;  and  that  in  a  twofold  sense. 

The  humbling  representation  of  the  Bible  is,  that  our 
race  is  by  nature  spiritually  dead.  This  does  not  mean 
that  man  has  been  deprived  of  any  of  his  essential  facul- 
ties; nor  that  he  is  incapable  of  exerting  his  powers  for 
wise  and  noble  purposes;  nor  that  he  may  not  on  occa- 
sion display  many  admirable  qualities.  It  means  simply 
that  he  is  destitute  of  holiness ;  that  he  has  lost  that 
which  especially  constituted  the  '  image  of  God '  in  which 

(79) 


80  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

he  was  created;  and  that  having  hecome  depraved  in 
character,  he  has  also  drawn  upon  himself  the  penalty  of 
the  Divine  law.  He  is  dead  inasmuch  as  his  life  is  a  for- 
feit to  the  justice  of  God;  and  he  is  dead  inasmuch  as 
sin  lias  cstahlishcd  its  complete  mastery  over  his  soul. 

This  double  death  has  been  annulled  by  the  interposi- 
tion of  Christ.  It  was  his  errand  to  our  world,  to  '  destroy 
him  that  had  the  power  of  death,'  and  liberate  his  cap- 
tives. This  He  effected  by  satisfying  the  claims  of  the 
law  against  them,  in  his  'obedience  unto  death;'  and  by 
sending  the  Holy  Spirit  to  renew  their  hearts  and  unite 
them  to  Himself  by  a  true  faith. 

Every  Christian  looks  to  Christ  as  the  Procurer  and 
Author  of  his  life.  He  knows  that  but  for  his  mediation, 
he  must  have  remained  for  ever  '  dead  in  trespasses  and 
in  sins.'  And  tracing  back  to  his  wondrous  love  the 
hopes  which  now  animate  his  bosom,  his  habitual  feeling 
is,  "  I  live ;  yet  not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me ;  and  the 
life  which  I  now  live  in  the  flesh,  I  live  by  the  faith  of 
the  Son  of  God  who  loved  me  and  gave  himself  for  me." 

2.  This  implies  that  Christ  is  the  Preserver  and  Guar- 
dian of  the  believer's  life.  We  drop  a  seed  into  the 
ground,  and  go  away  with  confidence  that  nature  will 
do  all  the  rest:  —  aided  by  the  kindly  warmth  of  the 
soil,  the  rains,  and  the  sunshine,  the  germ  will  spring  up 
and  bear  fruit,  as  a  matter  of  course.  Even  here,  how- 
ever, there  will  be  no  fruit  unless  a  pervading  Provi- 
dence give  effect  to  these  several  agencies.  And  cer- 
tainly in  the  spiritual  world,  while  means  are  indispensa- 
ble, means  alone  can  accomplish  nothing.  The  germ  of 
life  deposited  in  the  renewed  heart,  unlike  the  seed  you 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  81 

plant  in  your  garden,  falls  into  a  most  ungenial  soil. 
There  is  literally  no  nourishment  for  it  there.  All  its 
surroundings  are  unfavorable.  If  it  survives,  it  must 
survive  not  by  reason  of  the  elements  which  enfold  it, 
but  despite  of  them.  It  has  its  proper  type,  not  in  the 
flower  in  your  garden,  but  in  a  taper  thrown  upon  the 
sea.  And  yet  it  does  live.  The  flame  burns  on  ;  for  it 
is  fed  by  an  unseen  hand.  "Your  life  is  Jdd  with  Christ 
in  God.  When  Christ  who  is  our  life  shall  appear," — 
Here  is  the  secret  of  what  would  otherwise  be  an  inscrut- 
able mystery — the  conservation  of  this  divine  principle  in 
the  heart  of  the  Christian.  The  remains  of  his  own  corrupt 
nature  are  all  hostile  to  it.  The  whole  course  and  cur- 
rent of  the  world's  maxims  and  usages  runs  counter  to  it. 
It  is  exposed  to  the  deadly  assaults  of  Satan.  And  yeti 
it  lives.  It  lives  because  it  has  its  vital  origin  in  Christ. 
His  omnipotence  guards  it.  His  hand  nurtures  it. 
When  it  is  weak.  He  recruits  it.  When  it  has  devel- 
oped into  the  fruit-bearing  plant,  He  takes  his  pruning- 
knife  and  'purgeth  it  that  it  may  bring  forth  more  fruit.' 
There  is  no  experience  of  the  believer  more  universal 
and  decided  than  this  of  which  I  am  speaking,  namely,  his 
constant  and  absolute  dependence  upon  Christ  for  all  that 
pertains  to  his  new  life.  His  necessities  are  not  always 
the  same;  they  vary  with  the  endless  diversities  of  char- 
acter and  condition  which  mark  our  earthly  allotments. 
They  vary  as  between  different  persons;  and  they  vary 
with  the  changing  circumstances  of  the  same  person. 
To-day  we  need  wisdom;  to-morrow  it  may  be  courage; 
anon  it  may  be  patience ;  and  again  strength ;  and  so  on 
indefinitely.     The  essential  point  is,  that  whatever  the 


82  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

form  or  measures  in  which  the  spirit  life  needs  to  be  re- 
inforced, the  required  aid  must  come  from  one  source. 
In  Christ  we  'have  all  and  aboiuid.'  For  'in  Him  dwell- 
eth  all  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily;'  and  'of  his 
fulness  have  all  we  received.'  On  this  ground  do  we 
affirm  that  Christ  is  the  Preserver  and  Guardian  of  the 
believer's  life. 

3.  Christ  is  the  End  and  Object  of  the  believer's  life. 

This,  perhaps,  is  the  thing  chiefly  intended  by  the 
avowal,  'To  me  to  live  is. Christ.'  It  is  as  if  St.  Paul  had 
said,  "  I  have  no  other  business,  interest,  honor,  or  plea- 
sure, for  which  to  live,  but  Christ  and  his  glory,  service, 
and  favor.  To  know,  to  love,  to  follow  Christ,  is  my  life, 
my  glory,  my  joy."  To  know  what  this  protestation  means 
from  the  lips  of  this  great  apostle,  one  must  follow  his 
radiant  career  for  the  thirty  years  which  intervened  be- 
tween his  memorable  journey  to  Damascus  and  his  mar- 
tyrdom. From  the  day  when  the  implements  of  perse- 
cution dropped  from  his  hands  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,  untd  he  sealed  his  devotion  to  Him  with  a 
martyr's  death,  the  love  of  Christ  glowed  in  his  bosom 
with  a  pure  and  unquenchable  ardor.  It  was  his  master- 
passion,  to  which  every  other  aim  and  sentiment  paid 
homage.  He  could  say  "this  one  thing  I  do."  It  was 
his  business.  All  his  plans,  visits,  studies,  sermons,  jour- 
neys, centred  in  Christ.  Among  Jews  and  Gentiles — in 
Ephcsus  and  Corinth,  at  Athens  and  Rome,  among  the 
barbarians  of  Melita  and  the  sages  of  the  Areopagus,  it 
was  all  one ;  he  '  knew  nothing  but  Jesus  Christ  and  him 
crucified.' 

History  has  presented  to  us  various  examples  of  men 
who  have  illustrated  the  power  of  a  single,  great,  con- 


■      MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  83 

trolling  passion.  And  power  of  this  sort  always  im- 
presses the  mind  with  a  sort  of  awe,  even  where  it  fails 
to  command  our  moral  approbation.  AVitness,  for  ex- 
ample, the  boundless  ambition  of  Napoleon  Buonaparte ; 
or  the  vast  intellectual  treasures  which  made  the  name 
of  Humboldt  a  synonym  for  universal  knowledge.  Or, 
take,  as  a  more  grateful  instance,  the  favorite  representa- 
tive of  philanthropy,  John  Howard.  But  no  man  was 
ever  more  completely  possessed  by  a  single  passion  than 
St.  Paul;  and  the  mingled  awe  and  admiration  it  in- 
spires, is  all  the  greater  because  the  passion  which  con- 
sumed him  was  the  noblest  of  all  passions,  the  love  of 
Christ.  To  learn  what  this  sentiment  is  capable  of — 
what  labors  it  can  perform,  what  sacrifices  it  can  make, 
what  dangers  it  can  dare,  what  trials  it  can  endure,  and 
w^hat  victories  it  can  achieve — it  is  only  needful  to  study 
the  life  of  this  illustrious  apostle.  Nor  is  it  possible  to 
do  this  without  the  reflection, '  How  irresistible  would  the 
Church  be  if  all  who  are  marshalled  in  her  ranks  could 
say  in  the  sense  in  which  he  said  it.  To  me  to  live  is 
Christ.' 

Such  in  a  measure  is  the  case  with  every  true  Chris- 
tian. In  just  so  far  as  he  is  imbued  with  the  genuine 
spirit  of  discipleship,  it  will  be  'Christ'  for  him  to  'live.' 
Instead  of  making  his  own  honor  or  advancement  the 
prime  end  of  life,  he  sets  before  him  the  glory  of  his 
Master  and  the  welfare  of  his  kingdom.  Not  only  does 
his  conscience  impel  him  to  this  course,  but  his  affections 
do  also.  He  adopts  it  because  he  finds  his  happiness  in  it. 
The  themes  with  which  it  makes  him  conversant,  the 
offices  to  which  it  prompts  him,  and  the  fruits  it  yields, 
are  grateful  to  him.     It  is  a  service  which  he  feels  to  be 


84  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

immeasurably  superior  to  auy  scheme  of  life  that  termi- 
nates upon  this  world.  It  calls  into  exercise  the  best 
emotions  of  his  nature.  It  is  a  perpetual  protest  against 
the  selfish  tendencies  which  are  bound  up  in  every  human 
heart.  It  gratifies  his  benevolence.  It  lifts  him  above 
the  materialism  of  earth,  and  links  him  in  sympathy  and 
aim  with  the  pure  spirits  of  the  invisible  world.  Above 
all,  it  keeps  his  thoughts  occupied  with  the  Saviour  and 
his  redeeming  work,  and  helps  on  that  growing  assimila- 
tion to  his  image,  which  is  the  earnest  of  a  future  and 
eternal  fellowship  with  Him  in  glory. 

4.  Christ  is  the  Rule  and  Standard  of  the  believer's 
life. 

It  need  not  much  surprise  us  that  men  in  general  are 
no  better,  when  we  consider  by  what  rules  they  live. 
Water  does  not  rise  higher  than  its  fountain ;  and  it 
were  strange  if  men  should  soar  above  their  own  models. 
It  may  not  be  that  every  person  deliberately  proposes  to 
himself  a  certain  standard  of  excellence,  or  a  specific  code 
of  rules  for  the  regulation  of  his  conduct.  But  there  can 
be  no  question  that  the  actual  standard  adopted  by  people 
generally  is  usage  or  custom.  They  are  content  to  be 
as  good  as  their  neighbors.  If  they  conform  to  the 
prevalent  habits  of  society,  they  are  apt  to  hold  them- 
selves unimpeachable  on  the  score  of  morals.  And 
when  they  go  beyond  this,  so  far  as  to  superadd  to  the 
decorum  of  life  a  routine  of  religious  observances,  they 
are  slow  to  believe  that  they  can  be  seriously  at  fault 
either  in  theory  or  practice. 

The  Christian  has  a  different  standard.  With  him, 
'to  live,  is  Christ.'  The  rule  he  recognizes  is,  the  teach- 
ings and  the  example  of  Christ.     In  resolving  questions 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  85 

of  duty,  he  is  not  wont  to  make  his  primary  appeal  to 
the  world.  He  goes,  rather,  to  the  unerring  Word  and 
the  throne  of  grace.  It  may  subject  him  to  the  charge 
of  singularity ;  but  he  would  sooner  be  singular  with 
Christ  than  sin  with  the  world.  When  he  accepted 
Jesus  as  a  Saviour,  he  owned  Him  no  less  as  a  King. 
He  had  no  thought,  and  has  none  noAv,  of  sharing  in  the 
benefits  of  his  atonement,  without  acknowledging  his 
authority.  In  coming  to  Christ,  it  was  to  '  take  his  yoke 
upon  him,  and  learn  of  Him ;'  and  to  refuse  to  wear  his 
yoke,  would  be  to  show  that  he  had  not  yet  come  to 
Him.  For  this  is  the  Master's  own  test:  "Ye  are  my 
friends,  if  ye  do  whatsoever  I  command  you." 

5.  Christ  is  the  Support  and  Solace  of  the  believer's 
life. 

The  Christian  life  is  not  all  duty,  nor  all  privilege.  It 
involves  chastisement  and  affliction  with  a  uniformity 
which  seldom  knows  an  exception.  If  he  requires  a 
plain  chart  and  an  inflexible  standard  to  guide  his  steps, 
he  will  as  certainly  need  some  unfailing  source  of  conso- 
lation. And  this  is  part  of  that  "all  in  all"  which  he 
has  in  Christ.  For  who  so  able  or  willing  to  comfort 
the  afflicted  ?  He  did  not  spend  thirty  years  in  this  vale 
of  tears  without  learning  what  sorrow  is.  •  That  bitter 
cup  He  drank  to  the  dregs,  as  He  never  requires  his 
people  to  drink  of  it.  And  now  when  they  suffer,  their 
first  thought  is  of  their  suffering  Lord.  However  they 
may  have  neglected  Him  in  health  and  prosperity,  the 
first  stroke  of  trouble  sends  them  to  his  feet.  The 
smitten  believer  cannot  stay  away  from  Christ.  He  turns 
to  Him  with  an  instinct  which  cannot  be  repressed.  His 
feeling  is — 


86  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

"  Whither,  O  whither  should  I  fly, 
But  to  my  loving  Saviour's  breast, 
Secure  within  thine  arms  to  lie. 

And  sate  beneath  thy  wings  to  rest?" 

How  many  eyes  swimming  with  tears  must  be  turned 
towards  Him  at  this  moment  from  every  land  which  his 
Gospel  has  reached !  How  many  sobbing  voices  are 
pouring  their  griefs  into  his  ear  !  How  many  burdened 
and  anxious  souls  are  pleading  with  Him  for  deliverance 
from  actual  or  impending  trials !  And  not  one  of  all 
these  sufferers  shall  be  overlooked  by  Him.  For  it  is 
his  own  comforting  assurance,  "In  the  world  ye  shall 
have  tribulation ;  but  be  of  good  cheer ;  I  have  over- 
come the  world." 

6.  Christ  is  the  CroiDn  of  the  Christian's  life. 

This  belongs  to  the  future.  The  purport  of  it  is,  that 
He  who  has  been  their  '  life'  all  through  the  changes  of 
this  mortal  state,  will  bestow  Himself  upon  them  here- 
after with  a  glory  worthy  alike  of  his  exalted  rank  and 
of  his  infinite  love  to  them.  He  has  told  us  that  in  the 
day  of  days,  He  will  present  his  Church  to  Himself  as  a 
bride  adorned  for  her  husband.  These  august  espousals 
will  take  place  in  the  presence  of  an  applauding  uni- 
verse. The  Church,  refulgent  with  a  glory  beyond  that 
of  cherubim  and  seraphim,  will  be  exalted  to  his  right 
hand  with  a  pomp  and  joy  which  have  graced  no  other 
nuptials;  and  every  blood-bought  sinner  will  feel,  that 
in  the  consummation  of  this  sublime  union  with  his 
Lord,  his  cup  of  blessing  has  been  filled  to  overflowing. 

Other  ideas  there  are  embraced  in  this  comprehensive 
phrase,  "  to  me  to  live  is  Christ ; "  but  let  it  suffice  to 
have  shown  that  it  imports  that  Christ  is  the  Source  of 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  87 

the  believer's  life ;  that  He  is  its  Preserver  and  Guar- 
dian ;  its  End  and  Object  ;  its  Eule  and  Standard  ;  its 
Support  and  Solace  ;  and  its  immortal  Crown. 

This  brief  exposition  of  the  text  may  well  supersede 
any  formal  argument  in  commending  it  to  you  as  your 
watchword  for  the  year.  For  if  the  ideas  just  presented 
are  comprehended  in  this  expression,  it  must  be  apparent 
that  it  proposes  to  us  the  noblest  of  all  ends  and  the  best 
possible  rule  of  life.  It  is,  therefore,  eminently  adapted 
to  the  purpose  contemplated  in  this  discourse, — and  that 
in  respect  to  persons  of  all  classes  and  conditions.  Should 
the  feeling  arise  in  the  bosoms  of  any  who  hear  me,  '  It 
may  answer  for  those  who  are  in  more  favorable  circum- 
stances, and  who  have  ample  opportunities  for  Christian 
usefulness,  to  adopt  it  as  their  rule,  "To  me  to  live  is 
Christ;"  but  it  cannot  be  material  to  one  in  my  humble 
situation  to  do  this, — let  me  assure  you  that  you  have 
fallen  into  a  serious  error.  This  is  no  lesson  for  the  rich 
and  the  learned  merely;  no  prerogative  of  the  great. 
Whether  considered  as  a  duty  or  a  privilege — and  it  is 
really  both — it  belongs  alike  to  all,  and  is  equally  indis- 
pensable to  all.  It  is  impossible  you  should  be  placed  in 
any  circumstances  where  there  will  not  be  room  for  the 
exercise  of  this  feeling.  From  the  dawn  of  moral  agency 
until  we  close  our  eyes  in  death,  every  day  and  hour 
brings  occasion  for  us  to  say,  'To  me  to  live  is  Christ.' 

These  beloved  children  and  youth  who  are  at  various 
stages  of  their  education, — there  is  no  reason  why  you 
should  not  carry  this  sentiment  into  all  your  studies  and 
pastimes.  I  say  '  pastimes,'  because  it  is  quite  needful  to 
have  it  understood,  that  religion  does  not  frown  upon 
innocent   amusements.      It  is  not  Christianity,  but  the 


88  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

heartless,  mercenary  spirit  of  the  world,  which  condemns 
so  many  thousands  of  boys  and  girls  to  a  joyless  child- 
hood. AVere  the  reign  of  Christianity  universally  estab- 
lished, there  is  no  portion  of  the  human  family  who 
would  feel  the  auspicious  change  more  decidedly  than 
children.  Religion  is  your  best  friend.  If  you  will  enter 
upon  this  new  year  with  full  purpose  of  heart  to  live  for 
Christ,  you  will  go  about  your  studies  with  fresh  vigor, 
your  recreations  will  have  a  new  zest,  the  circle  of  your 
rational  pleasures  will  be  enlarged,  you  will  have  strength 
to  combat  your  infirmities  of  temper,  and  you  will  be  able 
to  do  something  for  that  SaA'iour  who  has  done  every- 
thing for  you.  There  are  those  among  you  who  can 
verify  this  representation  from  their  own  experience. 
They  will  tell  you,  that  there  is  no  life  like  living  for 
Christ.  Would  that  all  the  young  persons  who  hear  me 
might  consecrate  this  opening  year  to  God,  by  resolving 
in  his  strength,  '  Henceforth  it  shall  be  Christ  for  me  to 
live.' 

I  speak  to  many  who  earn  a  scanty  sustenance  by 
patient  toil — at  service,  perhaps;  by  the  needle;  in  the 
workshop  or  the  factory.  I  shall  not  greatly  err  if  I 
assume  that  you  have  your  share  of  the  crosses  and  vexa- 
tions of  life.  You  are  brought  into  contact  with  untoward 
tempers,  or,  peradventure,  suffer  from  them  in  your  own 
breasts.  Or  your  health  wavers.  Or  the  depression  of 
trade  abridges  your  work  and  wages,  while  a  family  look 
up  to  you  for  their  daily  bread. 

'And  is  this  text,  then,'  you  may  be  ready  to  ask, 
'designed  for  people  like  ust'  Yes;  precisely  for  such  peo- 
ple as  you  are.  Who  stand  in  greater  need  of  just  such 
a  monitor]     "To  me  to  live  is  Christ."     Take  this  into 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  89 

your  workshop.  Take  it  into  the  broad  thoroughfare 
where  you  are  pursuing  your  humble  but  honest  calhng. 
Take  it  up  to  your  lonely  attic  where  you  grow  weary 
and  sad  over  your  possibly  ill-paid  needlework.  Open 
your  hearts  to  the  blessed  thought,  'My  Master  has 
appointed  my  lot;  and  He  knows  what  poverty  and  toil 
are.'  Yes,  He  does  know.  He  knows  all  that  you 
suffer,  and  all  that  you  fear.  And  He  is  able  to  sustain 
you  under  every  burden;  and  to  reconcile  you  to  the 
things  which  most  try  your  patience,  and  perhaps  excite 
your  murmuring.  Only  admit  Him  to  your  daily  com- 
panionship, and  you  will  be  astonished  to  find  that  your 
burdens  are  more  than  half  gone. 

It  may  mortify  and  harass  you  to  think  that  you  are 
spending  life  for  such  'trivial  and  unworthy  ends.'  And 
well  it  may,  if  you  are  living  only  for  the  ends  which  are 
bound  up  in  your  handicraft.  Look  at  that  wonderful 
assemblage  of  powers  and  susceptibilities  which  pertains 
to  man  as  man,  and  which  divides  the  very  lowest  of  the 
race  from  all  the  inferior  animals;  and  say  whether  it  is 
meet  that  a  creature  thus  endowed  with  intelligence  and 
conscience  and  immortality,  should  spend  a  score  of  years, 
or,  as  it  may  be,  three  score  years,  at  some  manual  labor 
with  no  higher  thought  or  aim  than  that  of  keeping  him- 
self and  his  family  from  starvation.  If  this  be  the  view 
you  take  of  your  allotment,  there  must  be  discontent. 
But  this  is  the  atheistic,  not  the  Scriptural,  view.  It  is 
no  ordinance  of  the  Deity  that  you  should  live  and  die 
for  no  better  ends  than  these.  Your  trade,  I  grant,  may 
be  of  his  decree.  It  may  be  his  Avill  that  you  should 
turn  a  lathe,  or  haul  stone,  or  chop  wood,  or  spool  yarn, 
or  make  up  clothing,  and  so  earn  a  support  for  years 
7 


90  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

together.  But  it  is  no  less  his  will  that  you  should  fulfil 
these  various  tasks  hecause  He  lias  prescrihcd  thern^  and 
out  of  love  and  loyalty  to  Him.  His  requisition  is,  that 
we  shall  do  nothing  for  its  own  sake  merely,  or  for  any 
earthly  end ;  but  everything  for  Ilim  and  to  Him.  To 
show  how  comprehensive  this  obligation  is,  He  has  ex- 
pressly embraced  in  it  the  commonest  actions  of  life — 
those  upon  which  life  itself  is  suspended.  '  Whether, 
therefore,  ye  eat  or  drink,  or  whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to 
the  glory  of  God.'  This  is  but  another  form  of  the  sen- 
timent with  which  we  are  dealing.  He  for  whom  it  is 
Christ  to  live,  does  all  to  the  glory  of  God.  It  is  the 
infusion  of  this  element  into  the  world's  toil  that  redeems 
it  from  all  degradation.  As  if  to  silence  dispute  upon 
this  point,  the  apostle  has  applied  the  principle  even  to  the 
extreme  case  of  Roman  bondmen.  The  Christian  slaves 
of  pagan  masters  are  exhorted  to  obedience  on  the  ground 
that  the  service" ''tliey  pay  their  owners  is  really  paid  to 
Christ,  and  that  He  will  reward  them  for  it.  "  Be  obe- 
dient ...  as  the  servants  of  Christ,  doing  the  will 
of  God  from  the  heart ;  with  good-will  doing  service  as 
to  the  Lord,  and  not  to  men :  knowing  that  whatsoever 
good  thing  any  man  doeth,  the  same  shall  he  receive  of 
the  Lord,  whether  he' be  bond  or  free."  And  thus  it  is 
that  Christianity  dignifies  and  ennobles  all  labor.  It 
matters  not  how  obscure  the  sphere  he  has  assigned  you, 
nor  how  completely  its  material  results  may  be  absorbed 
in  the  bare  support  it  yields  you,  if  you  are  traversing 
your  diurnal  round  with  the  steadfast  aim, '  To  me  to  live 
is  Christ,'  there  are  angels  encamped  around  you,  and  the 
Lord  of  angels  will  one  day  say  to  you, '  Well  done,  good 
and  faithful  servant.' 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  91 

This  same  train  of  remark  is  equally  applicable  to  those 
engaged  in  mercantile  life  and  in  the  liberal  professions. 
If  your  pursuits  are  of  a  more  elevated  nature  than  those 
just  referred  to,  they  are  nevertheless  open  to  the  same 
impeachment,  as  being  in  themselves  utterly  unworthy 
to  engross  our  ultimate  aims.  There  is  nothing  in  com- 
merce, or  literature,  or  the  liberal  arts,  which  can  fill  and 
satisfy  the  soul.  Not  only  so,  but  these  occupations  may 
no  more  exclude  the  Deity  from  our  plans,  than  may  any 
other  form  of  idolatry.  They  have  their  legitimate  place ; 
but  they  fall  into  that  place  only  when  the  heart  has  been 
touched  with  the  love  of  God.  It  is  morally  impossible 
that  you  should  pursue  them  as  they  ought  to  be  pursued, 
until  you  have  learned  to  say,  'To  me  to  live  is  Christ.' 
If  you  will  begin  this  year  with  an  unreserved  consecra- 
tion of  yourselves  to  Christ,  and  make  it  the  rule  of  your 
conduct  to  live  for  Him  alone,  every  day  will  bring  you 
its  reward.  I  do  not  say  that  it  will  insure  you  an  un- 
exampled measure  of  outward  prosperity,  though  this 
would  be  its  proper  tendency,  but  I  do  say  that  it  would 
in  various  ways  exert  a  wholesome  influence  upon  your 
studies  and  your  business ;  that  it  would  afford  you  timely 
aid  in  perplexity  and  temptation ;  that  it  would  take  some 
of  the  thorns  out  of  your  paths;  and  that  it  would  make 
you  wiser  and  better  men,  and  bring  you  a  happier  year 
than  many  of  those  which  are  gone. 

In  respect  to  the  duties  involved  in  the  purpose,  "To 
me  to  live  is  Christ,"  it  clearly  imports  an  habitual  desire 
and  aim  to  employ  one's  talents,  time,  substance,  and 
opportunities,  in  promoting  the  cause  and  kingdom  of 
Christ  in  the  world. 

There  are  those  here  who  have  long  made  this  their 


92  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

endeavor,  and  who  must  in  sincerity  thank  God  to-day 
that  they  have  not  entirely  failed  of  their  object.  But 
there  are  probably  none  present  who  can  recall  their  past 
years  without  a  pang  of  regret.  With  most  of  us,  indeed, 
this  retrospect  must  be  fruitful  of  self-upbraidings.  For 
where  is  the  year  which  has  borne  to  heaven  the  report 
it  might  and  should  have  borne'?  Who  is  there  that  has 
made  the  most  of  life.,  even  for  a  single  twelve-month  % 
Let  this  reflection  make  us  the  more  solicitous  to  begin 
this  year  aright.  Especially  let  it  nerve  us  to  enter  upon 
the  year  resolved  to  do  all  the  good  we  can  in  the  name 
and  for  the  sake  of  Christ. 

In  order  to  this,  the  essential  thing  is  to  give  the 
Sa^'iour  that  place  in  our  affections  which  properly  be- 
longs to  Him.  If  He  has  his  place  in  our  hearts,  He  will 
have  it  in  our  plans,  in  our  conversation,  in  our  labors, 
and  in  our  lives.  One  of  the  most  remarkable  utterances 
that  ever  came  from  a  death-bed,  fell  from  the  lips  of  that 
saintly  philanthropist,  Elizabeth  Fry,  in  her  last  illness. 
Addressing  one  of  her  daughters,  she  said,  "  I  can  say 
one  thing :  —  Since  my  heart  was  touched  at  seventeen 
years  old,  I  believe  I  never  have  awakened  from  sleep, 
in  sickness  or  in  health,  by  day  or  by  night,  without  my 
first  waking  thought  being,  liow  best  I  might  serve  my 
Lord.''^  And  that  this  was  said  in  no  ostentatious  spirit, 
was  evident  from  her  constant  prayer,  that  she  '  might  be 
humble-minded,  and  preserved  from  decldng  herself  imth 
her  Lord's  jeioels.'' 

There  is  something  so  wonderful  in  this,  that  one  is 
tempted  to  pause  and  ponder  it.  But  that  we  cannot  do 
now.  Let  it  rather  show  us  to  what  heights  of  holiness 
the  soul  may  attain  even  in  our  own  day,  and  amidst  the 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  93 

stir  and  bustle  of  great  cities.  And  let  it  suggest,  as  it 
must  to  every  thoughtful  mind,  what  glorious  results 
would  flow  from  the  labors  even  of  a  single  Church,  if 
all  its  members  could  say  in  the  spirit  in  which  Mrs.  Fry 
said  it,  "To  me  to  live  is  Christ."  The  working  of  such 
a  spirit  once  lodged  in  the  hearts  of  a  people,  would  be 
as  certain  and  decisive  as  that  of  leaven  put  into  meal. 
Should  it  please  God  to  bestow  it  upon  us,  it  would 
evince  its  presence  by  tokens  which  could  neither  be  mis- 
taken nor  disparaged.  There  would  be  a  great  waking 
up — a  resurrection  as  it  were — of  the  slumbering  life  of 
the  Church.  There  would  be  deep  contrition  and  re- 
pentance. There  would  be  a  revival  of  brotherly  love. 
There  would  be  a  growing  attachment  to  the  Sanctuary 
and  the  place  of  prayer.  There  would  be  a  prompt  and 
cheerful  liberality  towards  the  Institutions  of  the  Church. 
There  would  be  ready  workers  for  the  Sunday  School, 
and  for  the  Home  Missions  of  our  city.  There  would 
be  more  of  household  consecration,  and  the  flame  would 
burn  more  brightly  upon  many  a  family  altar.  There 
would  be  frequent  conversions ;  and  many  would  be  seen 
pressing  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  All  would  feel  that 
they  must  aid,  accordmg  to  their  several  gifts,  in  helping 
forward  the  good  cause — even  those  who  have  hitherto 
stood  aloof,  with  little  more  than  a  nominal  connection 
with  the  church.  And  there  would  be  here  a  scene  of 
unobtrusive,  efficient  Christian  activity,  the  beneficent 
results  of  which  it  would  take  an  angel's  tongue  to  re- 
hearse, and  an  eternity  to  unfold. 

Such,  my  friends,  are  the  fruits  it  would  be  reasonable 
to  anticipate,  could  the  purpose  be  deeply  enshrined  in 
all  our  hearts  to-day.     "To  me  to  live  is  Christ."     You 


94  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

will  judge  whether  it  behooves  you  to  take  this  as  your 
watch-word,  and  to  try  in  your  Master's  name  to  keep  it 
ever  before  you. 

With  one  other  thought  I  shall  close.  I  have  spoken 
chiefly  of  the  active  portion  of  the  Christian  life.  Our 
text  includes  much  more.  It  meant  much  more  as  the 
Apostle  used  it.  It  was  as  mucli  '  Christ'  for  him  '  to  live' 
in  perils  and  persecutions  and  prisons,  as  when  he  was 
preaching  the  Gospel  to  anxious  thousands.  In  this 
way,  doubtless, — in  some  school  of  sorrow  or  of  suffer- 
ing— it  may  please  God  to  require  some  of  us  to  exem- 
plify this  precept.  Need  I  remind  you  that  there  is  no 
form  in  which  trouble  can  overtake  you  during  this  year, 
that  it  will  not  help  to  prepare  you  for  the  blow  and  sup- 
port you  under  it,  to  be  able  to  say,  "  To  me  to  live  is 
Christ t"  Let  the  night  be  ever  so  dark  and  the  storm 
ever  so  fierce,  you  cannot  be  overwhelmed  if  you  are 
bound  by  this  close  and  indissoluble  tie  to  the  Saviour: — 
as  soon  might  that  boat  upon  Gennesareth  have  perished 
in  which  He  lay  asleep  amidst  his  terrified  disciples. 
Whether,  therefore,  for  action  or  for  passion,  whether  the 
unknown  future  is  to  bring  with  it  health  or  sickness, 
joy  or  sorrow,  life  or  death,  I  commend  it  to  you  as  your 
sacred  talisman  for  this  opening  year,  and  I  humbly  im- 
plore God  to  write  it  upon  our  hearts, — 

"  To  ME  TO  LIVE  IS  ChRIST." 


1863. 


YI. 

"WAITING  FOR  THE  COMING  OF  OUR 
LORD  JESUS  CHRIST." 

1  COKINTHIANS  i.  7. 


This  text  for  the  year  has  not  been  selected  without 
much  deliberation.  For  our  circumstances  are  so  pecu- 
liar, so  sad,  so  solemn,  that  I  could  not  but  desire  to  find 
some  brief  and  comprehensive  scripture  which  might 
meet  the  exigencies  of  the  times,  and  be  a  help  to  you 
through  the  unknown  changes  of  this  opening  year. 

It  is  a  fundamental  doctrine  of  the  Bible,  that  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  is  to  '  come  again.'  Everything  around  us 
implies  this.  The  present  dispensation  is  palpably  in- 
complete in  itself  The  whole  course  of  the  world  has 
been  marked  with  such  inequalities,  wrong  has  so  tri- 
umphed over  right,  and  vice  over  virtue,  that  we  are 
compelled  to  regard  the  present  economy  as  included  in 
one  more  comprehensive  and  enduring.  This  conviction 
passes  into  absolute  certainty  as  soon  as  we  open  the  New 
Testament.  Let  it  suffice  to  quote  a  very  few  of  the  nu- 
merous passages  in  which  the  subject  is  mentioned.  "If 
I  go  and  prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again  and 
receive  you  unto  myself."     "This  same  Jesus,  which  is 

(95) 


96  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

taken  up  from  you  into  heaven,  shall  so  come  in  like  man- 
ner as  yc  have  seen  him  go  into  heaven."  "The  Son  of 
man  shall  come  in  the  glory  of  his  Father,  with  his  angels ; 
and  then  shall  he  reward  every  man  according  to  his 
works."  "Behold  he  comcth  with  clouds,  and  every  eye 
shall  see  him."  "So  Christ  was  once  offered  to  bear  the 
sins  of  many;  and  unto  them  that  look  for  him  shall  he 
appear  the  second  time  without  sin  unto  salvation." 

His  second  coming  will  differ  widely  from  his  first. 
Then  He  came  as  an  infant.  Although  angels  announced 
his  advent,  the  world  took  no  notice  of  his  birth.  He 
assumed  a  very  lowly  condition.  He  became  a  man  of 
sorrows.  He  was  'despised  and  rejected  of  men;'  and 
finally  died  an  ignominious  death — fulfilling  thus  the 
end  for  which  He  stooped  to  our  abode.  When  He  re- 
turns, it  will  be  "in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  with  power 
and  great  glory."  "The  Lord  himself  shall  descend  from 
lieaA'cn  with  a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel,  and 
with  the  trump  of  God."  Not  now  a  helpless  infant; 
not  now  a  man  of  sorrows :  He  comes  as  a  conqueror  and 
Judge.  "  I  saw  a  great  white  throne,  and  him  that  sat 
upon  it,  from  whose  face  the  earth  and  the  heaven  fled 
away."  "The  judgment  was  set,  and  the  books  were 
opened."  "  And  the  dead  were  judged  out  of  those  things 
that  were  written  in  the  books,  according  to  their  works." 
And  at  his  irreversible  mandate,  "the  wicked  shall  go 
away  into  everlasting  punishment :  but  the  righteous  into 
life  eternal." 

These  passages  may  serve  to  shew  how  the  doctrine  of 
the  Second  advent  is  interlaced  with  the  whole  textiu'e 
of  the  New  Testament.  It  was  too  full  of  comfort  to  be 
kept  in  the  background.     The  apostles  constantly  pre- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  97 

sented  it  to  the  churches  as  a  source  of  encouragement 
and  joy.  "Waiting  for  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  who  shall  also  confirm  you  unto  the  end,  that  ye 
may  be  blameless  in  the  day  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
"  Yet  a  little  while,  and  he  that  shall  come,  will  come, 
and  will  not  tarry."  "Looking  for  that  blessed  hope, 
and  the  glorious  appearing  of  the  great  God  and  our 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  So  for  from  being  a  speculative 
sentiment  with  them,  they  cherished  it  as  a  vital  and 
most  precious  truth.  Their  converts  did  the  same.  The 
early  Christians  lived  in  the  faith  of  it.  Every  reader  of 
ecclesiastical  history  knows  what  prominence  they  gave 
to  the  doctrine  of  Christ's  second  coming,  how  largely  it 
entered  into  their  religious  experience,  and  how  much  it 
helped  to  mould  their  characters. 

Then,  as  now,  there  was  much  speculation  as  to  the 
period  of  this  wished-for  event.  Some  of  them  fell  into 
the  error  of  the  Thessalonian  Christians,  who,  misinter- 
preting a  passage  in  St.  Paul's  first  Epistle  to  them,  sup- 
posed that  the  second  advent  was  just  at  hand.  It  was 
one  of  the  cliief  objects  of  the  second  Epistle  to  rectify 
this  mistake.  But  it  has  been  often  repeated  since.  Our 
o^vn  day  is  rife  with  confident  predictions  as  to  the  year, 
sometimes  as  to  the  month  and  even  the  day,  of  the  great 
Epiphany.  We  have  no  warrant  to  censure  all  inquiries 
in  this  direction.  The  prophecies  of  Scripture  claim  our 
attention,  as  well  as  its  histories.  But  this  is  ground 
where  we  must  tread  softly.  Prophecy  will  not  yield  its 
secrets  to  a  proud,  inquisitorial  temper.  When  a  man 
begins  to  dogmatize  here,  you  may  safely  turn  away  from 
him.  All  that  any,  the  most  humble  and  devout  stu- 
dent, can  hope  for,  is  to  be  led  into  an  approximate  esti- 


98  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

mate  of  the  time  for  our  Lord's  appearing.  Peradvcnture 
the  time  may  be  very  near — as  so  many  voices  affirm. 
Whether  near  or  remote,  however,  onr  duty  is  plain. 
The  Saviour  is  certainly  coming ;  and  it  behooves  us  to 
await  his  approach  as  those  who  feel  that  He  may  be  at 
the  door.  This  is  the  lesson  of  the  text,  and  we  cannot 
ponder  it  too  seriously.  We  are  not  able  to  indicate  the 
day  when  He  is  to  come :  the  problem  baffles  our  saga- 
city. But,  practically,  death  and  the  advent  are  identical 
as  to  our  individual  experience.  To  us,  Christ's  coming- 
is  the  hour  of  our  departure  into  his  presence.  Let  us 
blend  the  two  views,  the  general  and  the  particular,  to- 
gether, or,  as  occasion  serves,  adopt  one  or  the  other  in- 
differently, in  meditating  upon  the  theme. 

It  must  be  apparent  from  the  Scriptures  we  have 
quoted  that  the  future  advent  of  Christ  is  to  mark  the 
grand  consummation  of  this  world's  affairs ;  and  we  must 
therefore  recognize  his  agency  in  everything  that  occurs. 
This  observation  applies  particularly  to  events  of  a  public 
nature.  These  events  not  unfrequently  confound  our 
wisdom.  They  are  not  at  all  in  the  line  which,  if  that 
w^ere  our  prerogative,  we  should  prescribe.  They  diverge 
from  it,  indeed,  so  widely,  that  our  faith  needs  to  be  re- 
cruited from  above  before  we  can  acquiesce  in  them.  No 
illustration  could  be  more  to  our  purpose  here,  than  the 
present  melancholy  condition  of  our  country.  It  is  true, 
we  can  trace  out  the  causes  which  have  brought  this  ter- 
rible war  upon  us.  We  can  distinctly  refer  it  to  the 
passions  in  which  most  wars  originate.  AVe  can  indicate 
the  scries  of  measures,  the  plans,  and  policies,  of  leading 
individuals  and  of  political  parties,  which  preceded  and 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  99 

produced  it.  We  can  at  least  partially  account  in  the 
same  way  for  the  disastrous  course  of  the  war,  which 
presses  like  a  mill-stone  upon  all  hearts  to-day.  But  this 
does  not  meet  the  case.  We  need  something  more  to 
keep  down  the  murmuring  and  repining  which  are  strug- 
gling in  so  many  breasts  for  utterance.  We  think  of  our 
glorious  heritage  as  it  was;  and  then,  through  our  tears, 
we  look  at  it  as  it  is.  "We  are  become  a  reproach  to 
our  neighbors,  a  scorn  and  derision  to  them  that  are 
round  about  us."  We  are  made  "  a  by-word  among  the 
heathen,  a  shaking  of  the  head  among  the  people."  And 
there  is  but  one  reflection  which  can  relieve  the  intolera- 
ble anguish  of  our  hearts:  that  is,  the  thought  that  God's 
hand  is  in  all  these  changes.  "  These  are  parts  of  Ms 
ways."  They  belong  to  that  sublime  plan  He  is  work- 
ing out ;  which  comprehends  as  well  cabinets  and  em- 
pires, as  the  beasts  of  the  field  and  the  fowls  of  the  air. 
Everything  in  this  plan  looks  to  the  coming  of  the  Son 
of  man  to  judge  the  world.  To  this  end  converge  all 
the  agencies  concerned  in  this  sad  contest,  whatever 
contributed  to  produce  it,  and  the  countless  incidents, 
great  and  small,  which  have  marked  its  progress.  He 
foresaw  all,  permitted  all,  controls  all,  and  all  will  be 
reviewed  and  adjudicated  by  Him  at  his  coming. 

We  may  go  a  step  further.  I  know  not  how  far  it 
may  relieve  the  minds  of  thoughtful  and  desponding 
men,  but  the  Saviour  himself  has  taught  us  that  such 
scenes  as  these  must  lead  on  his  advent.  When  the 
twelve  asked  him,  '  What  shall  be  the  sign  of  thy  com- 
ing,' He  said,  "  Ye  shall  hear  of  wars  and  rumors  of 
wars :  see  that  ye  be  not  troubled :  for  all  these  things 
must  come  to  pass,  but  the  end  is  not  yet.     For  nation 


100  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

shall  rise  against  nation,  and  kingdom  against  kingdom, 
and  there  shall  be  famines,  and  pestilences,  and  earth- 
quakes, in  divers  places.  All  these  are  the  beginning  of 
sorrows."  If  so,  then  no  strange  thing  has  happened  to 
us.  AVhatever  our  pride  and  self-complacency  may  hav^ 
suggested,  we  had  really  no  reason  to  expect  an  exemp- 
tion from  these  predicted  calamities.  x\nd  now  that  they 
are  upon  us,  our  duty  is  to  accept  them  as  part  of  "  the 
things  that  must  come  to  pass"  before  '  the  sign  of  the  Son 
of  man'  appears  'in  heaven.'  The  true  use  of  them  is  to 
impress  it  more  vividly  upon  our  minds  that  Christ  will 
certainly  come  again,  to  engage  our  thoughts  in  suitable 
meditations  upon  his  advent,  and  to  stir  up  all  who  know 
how  to  pray  to  intercede  with  Him  on  behalf  of  our  afflicted 
country.  If  He  is  leading  us  as  a  people  '  in  a  way  that 
we  knew  not,'  if  He  is  '  giving  us  the  bread  of  adversity 
and  the  water  of  affliction,'  let  us  patiently  wait  "  for  the 
coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,"  assured  that  it  will 
clear  up  the  mysteries  of  this  dispensation,  and  make  it 
subservient  to  the  ultimate  triumph  of  his  Church. 

The  sentences  quoted  a  moment  ago  have  a  still 
broader  signification.  '  Nation  shall  rise  against  nation, 
and  kingdom  against  kingdom ;  and  there  shall  be  fam- 
ines, and  earthquakes,  and  pestilences,  in  divers  places.' 
We  are  engrossed  with  our  own  war.  It  fixes  for  the 
time  the  attention  of  the  other  great  powers  of  Christen- 
dom. But  if  there  be  any  foundation  for  the  belief,  so 
general  among  Christians,  that  this  prophecy  relates  to  a 
period  not  now  very  distant,  it  is  quite  as  likely  that  other 
nations  may  be  involved  in  war,  as  that  our  fratricidal 
strife  will  soon  cease.  It  need  not  surprise  us  to  see  the 
convulsions  which  are  desolating  our  country  and  Mex- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  IQl 

ico,  kindling  a  fire  which  shall  enwrap  all  Europe,  and 
perhaps  the  globe,  in  its  baleful  splendors.  The  believer 
is  forewarned.  He  has  '  the  sure  word  of  prophecy'  to 
sustain  his  faith,  whatever  may  happen.  With  the 
Psalmist  he  may  say, 

"  Let  mountains  from  their  seats  be  hurled 
Down  to  the  deep,  and  buried  there, 
Convulsions  shake  the  solid  world, — 
Our  faith  shall  never  yield  to  fear. 

Loud  may  the  troubled  ocean  roar  : 

In  sacred  peace  our  souls  abide, 
While  every  nation,  every  shore, 

Trembles,  and  dreads  the  swelling  tide." 

Of  the  horrors  which  may  attend  these  mighty  conflicts, 
and  the  transformation  they  are  to  work  in  the  political 
geography  of  the  globe,  we  can  form  no  adequate  con- 
ception. The  only  thing  certain  about  them  is  that  He 
"  who  hath  his  way  in  the  whirlwind  and  in  the  storm," 
is  at  the  helm,  and  will  so  restrain  and  guide  the  turbu- 
lent tide  of  affairs  as  to  make  every  change  subservient 
to  his  own  infinitely  wise  purposes.  Through  all  the 
darkness  and  terror  of  the  chaos  which,  it  would  seem,  is 
to  come  upon  the  world,  one  beam  of  light  will  continue 
to  shed  its  calm,  consoling  radiance  upon  the  believer's 
path, — the  light  that  presages  and  assures  the  second 
coming  of  his  Lord.  Here  he  finds  comfort  when  all 
around  him  are  m  despair.  It  is  not  that  he  is  insensible 
to  the  claims  of  his  country  and  his  race.  Humanity 
and  patriotism  draw  their  noblest  inspirations  from  the 
bosom  of  Christianity.  But  however  sacred  may  be  these 
ties,  he  has  others  that  are  higher  and  holier  still.     He 


102  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

belongs  to  '  a  kingdom  that  cannot  be  moved;'  a  king- 
dom which  he  knows  will  survive  these  commotions,  and 
to  the  strength  and  splendor  of  which  they  will  even  be 
made  to  contribute.  It  is  his  daily  prayer  that  this 
'  kingdom'  may  '  come.'  And  nothing  will  help  so  much 
to  reconcile  him  to  the  '  wars  and  rumors  of  wars,'  the 
'  earthquakes  and  pestilences'  which  are  to  afflict  the 
nations,  as  the  conviction  that  they  herald  the  "  coming 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

Thus  much  it  seemed  proper  to  say  respecting  the 
bearing  of  this  text  upon  public  affairs.  The  times  that 
are  passing  over  us  are  fraught  with  such  momentous 
issues,  are  so  full  of  solemn  warning  and  instruction, 
that  no  Year-text  could  be  appropriate  which  might 
not  aid  us  in  interpreting  and  submitting  to  them.  I 
know  of  nothing  better  that  we  can  do  in  reference  to 
these  sad  and  appalling  scenes  than  to  fix  our  thoughts 
upon  the  great  event  of  the  future,  and,  with  lowly  rev- 
erence and  steadfast  trust,  wait  "  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

But  this  text  has  other  lessons  for  us  of  a  more  personal 
character.  First  of  all,  it  suggests  the  importance  o{ pre- 
paring to  meet  the  Lord  at  his  coming.  This  is  implied 
in  '  waiting'  for  Him.  The  parable  of  the  ten  virgins 
shows  that  we  may  go  out  to  meet  Him,  without  being 
ready  for  Him.  The  five  foolish  virgins  who  went  forth 
with  the  wise,  represent,  it  is  to  be  feared,  multitudes  who 
bear  the  lamp  of  a  Christian  profession  with  no  oil  in  it — 
no  grace.  Nor  will  the  most  serious  and  faithful  believers 
ever  feel  themselves  to  be  so  well  prepared  for  his  coming, 
that  they  might  not  be  more  so.  Nothing,  in  this  view, 
could  be  more  helpful,  than  the  habitual  looking  for  his 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  IQS 

advent  to  which  the  text  refers ;  as  nothing,  certainly,  could 
be  more  rational.  For,  as  already  hinted,  the  advent  which 
directly  concerns  us  as  individuals  is  that  in  which  He 
comes  to  summon  us  into  eternity.  He  has  himself  con- 
nected with  it  the  admonition  I  am  enforcing :  "  Be  ye 
also  ready  ;  for  in  such  an  hour  as  ye  think  not  the  Son  of 
man  cometli.''''  What  could  more  effectually  put  us  upon 
instant  and  constant  exertions  to  prepare  for  this  event, 
than  the  conviction  that  it  may  occur  at  any  moment] 
Impressed  with  this  feeling — daily  awaiting  the  Son  of 
man — there  is  no  one  who  would  not  examine  carefully 
his  foundations,  to  learn  whether  his  hope  would  be  likely 
to  bear  the  scrutiny  of  the  Omniscient  eye.  It  would 
quicken  our  solicitude  in  this  direction,  to  reflect  tliat 
many  are  self-deceived ;  that  there  are  tares  among  the 
wheat ;  that  many  will  seek  at  the  last  day  to  enter  in 
who  shall  not  be  able ;  and  that  many  who  will  in  that 
day  stand  and  cry  '  Lord,  Lord,'  will  hear  from  his  lips, 
the  overwhelming  reply,  '  I  never  knew  you.'  These 
and  other  considerations  show  the  necessity  of  an  honest 
and  prayerful  inquest  into  the  grounds  of  our  hope. 
When  He  comes.  He  will  try  that  hope.  He  will  see 
whether  it  rests  only  upon  his  own  blood  and  right- 
eousness ;  whether  it  has  '  purified  the  heart'  as  He  is 
pure ;  and  whether  it  is  attended  by  faith  and  humility 
and  the  other  Christian  graces.  And  every  one  who  de- 
sires to  guard  against  a  mistake,  will  anticipate  this 
scrutiny,  and  bring  his  hope  to  the  unerring  test  of  Holy 
Scripture. 

Nor  this  alone.  No  one  who  is  waiting  and  longing 
for  his  Master's  appearing,  will  be  satisfied  to  rest  here. 
The  deeper  his  conviction  that  he  is  "  in  Christ,"  the  more 


104  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

resolutely  will  lie  strive  to  be  like  Christ.  The  expecta- 
tion of  meeting  an  earthly  monarch,  surrounded  with  the 
splendors  of  a  court,  may  exhaust  itself  in  laborious 
preparations  to  appear  well.  The  King  of  kings  cannot 
be  put  off  with  a  show  of  outward  grace  and  dignity.  To 
meet  Him  acceptably,  we  must  not  simply  appear,  but  be, 
what  He  can  approve.  It  is  the  property  and  the  high 
privilege  of  his  people  to  bear  something  of  his  image. 
And  those  who  wait  for  his  coming  will  deem  no  pains 
too  great,  and  no  sacrifices  too  severe,  which  may  bring 
them  into  closer  fellowship  with  their  Lord,  and  impart 
to  them  more  of  his  likeness.  If  you  give  this  text  its 
proper  place  in  your  hearts  for  the  coming  twelve-month, 
or  so  much  of  the  period  as  it  may  please  God  to  spare 
you,  you  will  be  growing  like  Him  daily,  and  his  advent 
will  fill  you  with  'joy  unspeakable.' 

Not  less  potential  will  it  prove  as  a  stimulus  to  duty. 
The  argument  here  is  very  short.  '  The  Son  of  man  is 
coming  back.  He  may  appear  at  any  hour.  Let  me, 
then,  do  with  my  might  whatever  my  hands  find  to  do.' 
This  argument  is  conclusive  in  whatever  aspect  we  con- 
template Him.  We  may  await  Him  as  our  final  Judge. 
Then  it  behooves  us  to  abound  in  those  offices  of  kind- 
ness and  sympathy  which  He  himself  has  taught  us  will 
receive  his  benediction  at  the  last  day : — "  Inasmuch  as 
ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these  my  breth- 
ren, ye  have  done  it  unto  me."  We  may  await  Him  as 
our  Sovereign.  This  world,  then,  is  a  part  of  his  domain. 
He  has  placed  us  here  that  we  may  help  to  bring  it  back 
to  its  allegiance.  To  one  He  has  given  five  talents ;  to 
another  two  ;  to  another  one.  To  each  He  has  said, '  Go 
work  in  my  vineyard.'     We  may  look  to  his  return  as 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  105 

our  Saviour.  Then  we  owe  Him  our  all.  What  bound- 
less love  was  that  which  brought  Him  down  to  Beth- 
lehem, which  led  Him  to  Gethsemane  and  Calvary  for 
our  redemption  !  Let  this  ineffable  love  '  constrain'  us. 
Let  us  live  for  Him  who  died  for  us ! 

This  is  the  natural,  necessary  effect  of  waiting  for  his 
advent.  Our  work  is  large.  He  it  is  that  prescribed  it, 
who  alternately  commands  and  entreats  us  not  to  neglect 
it.  The  obligation  to  prosecute  it  with  unfaltering -step, 
borrows  increased  sanctity  from  the  manger  and  the 
cross ;  from  his  first  advent  to  ransom  his  people,  and  his 
future  advent  to  crown  them  with  glory  and  honor  and 
immortality.  It  is  a  work  every  way  worthy  of  the 
nature  and  destiny  of  the  race.  It  is  as  vast  and  endur- 
ing as  the  soul.  It  looks  to  the  well-being  of  man  here 
and  hereafter.  It  links  itself  with  the  clemency  and  the 
benevolence  of  the  Deity.  And  yet  it  admits  of  the  co- 
operation— it  demands  the  co-operation — of  all,  down  to 
the  very  humblest ;  of  those  who  have  but  a  single  talent, 
or  who  can  cast  but  their  two  mites  into  his  treasury. 
This  work,  I  say,  He  has  laid  upon  us  all.  It  lies  around 
us  in  every  direction.  It  is  in  our  houses.  It  fringes  the 
paths  we  are  every  day  traversing.  It  appeals  to  our 
strongest  sympathies,  for  it  is  the  case  of  the  diseased,  of 
the  wounded,  of  the  dead.  If  they  were  the  victims  of 
tlie  battle  field,  the  poor,  spectral  inmates  of  the  hospital, 
we  could  not  refuse  them  our  aid.  In  part,  they  are. 
For  this  is  just  one  department  of  the  service  to  which 
He  is  now  calling  us.  But  it  is  not  the  whole.  "  The 
field  is  the  u'orldy  Where  there  is  bodily  sickness,  and 
where  there  is  not ;  wherever  there  is  s^?^,  there  the  '  field' 
is ;  there  lies  our  work — broad  enough,  varied  enough, 


1Q6  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

difficult  enough,  momentous  enough,  to  task  the  powers 
of  angels,  yet  to  be  done  by  us  or  not  done  at  all. 

Very  many,  and  very  cogent  are  the  arguments  which 
commend  this  service  to  us.  But  the  one  reflection  we 
are  more  concerned  with  is,  that  "  the  Lord  Jesus  shall 
so  come,  in  like  manner"  as  the  twelve  saw  Him  "  go  into 
heaven."  To  believe  this,  to  realize  it,  to  take  it  with  us 
into  all  the  hours  and  all  the  scenes  of  this  opening  year, 
would  supersede  all  the  appeals  and  expostulations  w^ith 
which  we  are  accustomed  to  chide  our  own  and  each 
other's  delays,  and  mould  our  Christianity  to  a  type 
w^hich,  peradventure,  it  has  never  yet  put  on.  What 
further  need  of  exhortation,  with  a  people  whose  faith 
habitually  sees  their  Lord,  however  distant,  coming  in 
the  clouds  of  heaven  to  judge  the  world?  What  ele- 
ment of  greater  power  could  be  infused  into  the  heart 
of  any  believer  % 

This  earnest,  constant  longing  for  the  advent  would 
make  'new  creatures'  of  us  all.  It  would  reduce  the 
things  of  earth,  its  cares,  its  plans,  its  honors,  to  some- 
thins"  of  their  true  dimensions.  It  would  dissolve  the 
spell  which  makes  so  many  of  us  live  as  if  the  things 
which  are  not  seen  were  temporal,  and  the  things  which 
are  seen,  eternal.  It  would  reprove  our  ready  discour- 
agement on  meeting  with  difficulties,  and  our  timidity  in 
the  presence  of  dangers.  It  would  set  every  one  of  us 
to  work  in  some  way ;  not  to  do  each  other's  tasks,  but 
our  own  ;  not  spending  life  in  useless  regrets  that  we  have 
not  the  gifts  and  opportunities  of  some  one  else,  but 
employing  the  gifts  and  opportunities  the  Master  has 
bestowed  upon  us  to  the  best  possible  advantage.  What 
energy  it  woidd  infuse  into  every  bosom  !     What  a  new 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  107 

aspect  it  would  spread  over  the  face  of  this,  or  any  other 
church — this  conscious,  pervading  sense  of  the  coming  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ !  How  it  woukl  clothe  the  preach- 
ing and  the  hearing  with  new  solemnity !  How  it  would 
crowd  the  prayer-meeting  with  devout  worshippers  !  How 
it  would  lift  all  Sabbath-school  teaching  up  into  a  region 
of  spiritual  vitality  !  How  it  would  swell  indefinitely  the 
willing  offerings  to  the  Lord's  treasury  !  How  it  would 
arouse  formal  and  useless  professors  to  the  realities  of 
the  Christian  life !  How  it  would  enkindle  the  sympa- 
thies of  God's  people  and  call  forth  their  exertions  on 
behalf  of  the  unconverted !  How  it  would  send  forth 
new  workers  into  every  department  of  missionary  and 
philanthropic  labor,  among  the  po6r,  the  sick,  the  vicious, 
and  the  lost !  How  it  would  exorcise  the  envy  and  the 
jealousy  and  the  pride  which  now  infest  even  the  Church 
itself,  and  cement  into  one  the  blessed  brotherhood  of  the 
faithful !  How,  by  God's  blessing,  it  would  bring  down 
showers  of  heavenly  influence  upon  the  Church,  and  lead 
on  those  promised  Pentecostal  seasons  when  converts  shall 
fly  to  Zion  '  as  clouds,  and  as  doves  to  their  windows !' 
Is  it  not  worth  while,  with  interests  like  these  at  stake, 
to  give  '  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ'  its  due 
place  in  our  hearts  and  lives  ] 

This  text,  again,  will  meet  an  urgent  want :  it  will 
be  to  you  a  'well-sprin(j  of  consolation.  'An  urgent 
want,'  I  call  this,  for  such,  alas,  it  is.  Every  year  must 
needs  bring  its  sorrows :  for  '  man  is  born  to  trouble  as 
the  sparks  fly  upward.'  But  these  are  years  of  '■great 
tribulation.'  Look  at  the  symbols  of  woe  here,  and  in 
every  church  you  enter,  and  along  all  the  thoroughfares 
If  we  could  bring  the  mourners  of  the  land  together 


108  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

tliey  would  make  an  army  larger  than  that  which  has  gone 
forth  for  the  protection  of  our  Constitution,  and  every 
battle  is  swelling  their  crowded  ranks — adding  fresh  wid- 
ows and  orphans  to  the  mighty  concourse  of  the  bereaved. 
Nor  is  this  work  likely  to  cease.  Whatever  may  be  the 
case  with  the  forces  in  the  field,  this  army  of  mourners 
bids  fair  to  go  on  recruiting  its  sombre  columns  with  un- 
slacked  energy.  You  need,  then — we  all  need,  for  who 
is  not  a  sharer  in  these  sorrows  \  we  need  for  this  year 
which  literally  opened  with  blood  and  carnage,*  some 
word  of  grace  and  hope  from  the  sacred  oracles  which 
may  strengthen  us  for  these  trials.  We  have  it  here : 
"  Waiting  for  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
For  this  assures  us  that  these  scenes  must  have  an  end. 
AVe  are  almost  despairing  of  this.  Every  one  is  asking 
of  his  neighbor,  '  Is  this  war  ever  to  endV  The  manner 
in  which  it  has  been  conducted  gives  but  too  much  occa- 
sion for  this  feeling.  But  it  will  end — in  God's  own  time 
and  way.  Sooner  or  later  it  must  give  place  to  a  widely- 
different  dispensation, — for  the  introduction  of  which,  as 
already  intimated,  it  is  a  necessary  part  of  the  prepara- 
tion. And  whatever  may  be  the  Divine  purpose  respect- 
ing the  future  course  of  the  war,  you  can  have  no  better 
antidote  for  its  griefs  than  to  fix  your  minds  trustfully 
upon  the  coming  of  Christ.  To  us  individually,  let  me 
repeat,  his  coming  is  the  hour  of  our  departure  out  of 
this  world.  If  we  can  but  get  our  hearts  filled  with  this 
thought,  with  the  sense  of  his  approach,  with  the  patient 
looking  and  longing  for  Him,  w^e  might  survey  even 
these  harrowing  scenes  with  something  of  serenity.     The 

*  The  battle  of  Murfree.sboro',  Teiin. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  109 

secret  of  that  composure  which  so  many  martyrs  have 
displayed  at  the  stake  and  in  the  arena  of  wild  beasts, 
lay  in  their  confident  persuasion  of  Christ's  coming. 
Nor  is  this  a  gift  confined  to  times  of  persecution.  It  is 
lighting  up  many  a  death-hed  around  us  with  rays  from 
his  '  far-off  coming.'  It  is  the  common  heritage  of  his 
people,  if  they  only  have  the  faith  to  appropriate  it. 
What  power  can  earth  or  hell  have  to  harm  a  believer 
who  sees  and  desires  the  coming  of  his  Saviour?  This 
event  is  so  sublime  in  its  nature,  so  vast  in  its  propor- 
tions, that  where  it  is  fitly  realizfed  and  appreciated,  it 
must  absorb  all  other  events.  To  see  and  feel  it  as  the 
apostle  whose  language  we  are  using  did,  is  to  be  armed 
against  all  adversaries.  It  was  this  faith  which  enabled 
liim  to  say,  "  I  take  pleasure  in  infirmities,  in  reproaches, 
in  necessities,  in  persecutions,  in  distresses,  for  Christ's 
sake."  "I  am  filled  with  comfort;  I  am  exceeding  joy- 
ful in  all  our  tribulations."  He  could  say  these  things 
because  he  '  waited  for  the  Son  of  God  from  heaven' — 
patiently  and  confidently  '  looking  for  that  blessed  hope, 
and  the  glorious  appearing  of  the  great  God  and  oin* 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ.'  Could  we  emulate  his  faith  in 
this  doctrine,  we  should  attain  his  composure  and  joy  in 
danger  and  suffering.  There  is  no  reason  why  we  should 
not  attempt  this.  The  circumstances  we  are  placed  in 
make  it  peculiarly  our  duty,  yes,  and  our  privilege,  too, 
to  dwell  more  upon  this  great  event,  which  St.  Paul  and 
the  early  Christians  found  such  a  source  of  comfort. 
The  turmoil  and  strife  around  us  bid  us  lift  our  thoughts 
from  the  temporal  to  the  spiritual,  from  man  to  God, 
from  earth  to  heaven.  It  is  an  inexpressible  relief  to 
turn  away  from  all  this  sin  and  suffering  and  sorrow. 


110  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAH. 

from  the  confusion  and  wreck  and  chaos  of  earth,  to 
that  pure  and  animating  and  glorious  contemplation, — 
the  Saviour  of  the  world  coming  to  take  his  ransomed 
people  home.  If  this  brings  no  balm  to  your  wounded 
hearts,  I  know  not  what  will  solace  you. 

For  Christ's  coming,  as  just  hinted,  is  for  a  purpose. 
To  await  his  advent,  is  to  have  the  thoughts  engaged 
with  what  is  to  follow  it — that  is,  idtli  heaven.  And  if 
ever  there  was  a  time  with  us,  when  those  who  '  love  his 
appearing'  might  well  employ  themselves  in  meditating 
upon  heaven,  that  time  is  the  present.  We  cannot 
afford  to  dispense  with  it.  To  shut  us  up  to  earth ;  to 
compel  us  to  fix  our  thoughts  day  by  day  and  hour  by 
hour,  without  relief,  upon  the  calamities  which  are  blight- 
ing and  blasting  our  beloved  country,  were  to  consign 
us  all  to  hopeless  despondency  and  wretchedness.  Hea- 
ven tenders  us  the  respite  that  we  need.  The  deeper  the 
shadows  which  gather  around  us,  the  more  grateful  its 
chastened  light.  The  louder  swells  the  voice  of  battle 
and  the  wail  of  mourners,  the  more  welcome  its  cloudless 
peace  and  seraphic  anthems.  The  sharper  our  griefs  and 
the  sadder  the  blighting  of  our  eartlily  hopes,  the  more 
fondly  should  we  turn  to  that  bright  abode  where  God 
shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  all  eyes,  and  '  sorrow  and 
sighing  shall  flee  away.' 

Surely,  nothing  can  be  more  consoling  to  Christian 
mourners,  nothing  more  becoming  to  all  Christians  at  a 
season  like  the  present,  than  devout  meditation  upon  the 
Saviour's  coming,  and  the  glory  which  is  to  follow  it. 
What  we  require,  what  we  should  fervently  pray  for,  is, 
that  the  Divine  Spirit  may  not  only  write  this  blessed  text 
upon  our  memories,  but  imbue  our  whole  nature  with  it; 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  m 

that  He  may  keep  it  ever  before  our  minds,  that  the  Saviour 
will  come  again ;  that  He  may  help  us  to  live  in  the  faith 
of  this  precious  truth ;  and  that  amidst  all  the  untried 
experiences  of  this  year,  its  duties  and  its  perils,  its  anx- 
ieties and  its  temptations,  its  pleasures  and  its  sorrows. 
He  may  enable  us  patiently  and  hopefully  to  "  wait  for  the 
coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,"  and  daily  to  grow  in 
meekness  for  a  holy  and  happy  heaven. 

If  I  have  chiefly  spoken,  in  these  remarks,  to  and  of 
the  communion  of  the  faithful,  it  has  been  with  no  design 
of  excluding  the  rest  of  my  people  from  the  scope  of  this 
exhortation.  To  you,  my  unconverted  friends,  no  less 
than  to  professing  Christians,  I  tender  it  as  your  motto 
for  the  year,  "  waiting  for  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."  To  you,  I  might  almost  say,  by  pre-eminence  I 
commend  it.  That  you  have  never  yet  walked  in  the 
light  of  such  a  text,  is  a  most  cogent  reason  why  you 
should  adopt  it  now.  That  his  coming  concerns  you  as 
much  as  it  concerns  his  own  people ;  that  it  concerns  you 
more  deeply  than  any  other  future  event ;  that  your  con- 
cern in  it  will  continue  as  the  absorbing  interest  of  your 
being  while  eternity  rolls  on  its  endless  cycles ;  are  truths 
to  which  you  will  readily  assent.  If  truths  at  all,  they  are 
truths  of  infinite  moment  to  you.  Why  not,  then,  enter 
upon  this  new  year  by  fixing  your  thoughts  upon  the 
Second  advent  ]  Why  not  take  this  as  your  guiding  star 
for  the  year  ]  The  fact  of  Christ's  coming  is  indisputable. 
Should  not  a  flict  which  is  to  draw  such  vast  issues  after 
it  be  recognized  in  your  plans,  in  your  business,  in  your 
domestic  and  social  relations,  in  the  whole  routine  of  life '? 
Can  you  hope  for  mercy  through  the  blood  of  Christ,  if 
you  refuse  to  acknowledge  Him  ]     Is  it  not  better  to  wait 


112  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAH. 

for  Him  as  a  Saviour,  than  to  meet  Him  as  a  Judge  ?  to 
surrender  to  his  love,  than  to  be  overwhelmed  by  his 
vengeance'?  God  grant  that  you  may  so  ponder  these 
things,  as  to  spend  this  year,  "  waiting  for  the  coming 
OF  OUR  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 


1864. 


VII. 
^'APPROVED  UNTO  GOD." 

2  TIMOTHY  II.  15. 


This  you  will  please  accept  as  our  year-text.  If  we 
make  it  such  in  reality,  it  cannot  fail  to  impress  upon 
this  new  year,  or  upon  so  much  of  it  as  we  may  be  spared 
to  see,  a  value  which,  perhaps,  few  of  our  years  have 
borne. 

It  is  the  parting  counsel  of  '  Paul  the  aged'  to  his  '  son 
Timothy, — his  'parting  counsel,'  for  this  his  latest  Epistle 
was  written  just  before  his  martyrdom.  "  Study  to  show 
thyself  approved  unto  God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not 
to  be  ashamed,  rightly  dividing  the  word  of  truth."  He 
knew  that  this  young  Evangelist,  to  whom  he  was  bound 
by  so  many  tender  ties,  would  be  called  to  a  life  of  great 
labor  and  trial ;  and  that  no  efforts  would  be  wanting 
on  the  part  of  the  subtle  adversaries  of  the  Gospel,  to 
drive  or  entice  him  into  forbidden  paths.  As  a  safeguard 
against  these  perils,  he  prescribes  for  him  a  rule  of  duty, 
so  simple,  so  just,  so  comprehensive,  that  no  occasion 
could  arise  on  which  he  might  not  find  his  advantage 
and  comfort  in  appealing  to  it.  "  Study  to  shew  thyself 
approved  unto  God." 

If  this  was  a  good  rule  for  Timothy,  it  must  be  equally 
good  for  us.     What  I  have  to  propose  is,  that  we  carry 

(113) 


114  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

tins  sentiment  with  ns  into  all  the  scenes  and  all  the 
engagements  of  the  year ;  that  we  begin  every  morning 
with  the  inquiry,  '  How  can  I  approve  myself  nnto  God 
to-day"?'  and  ask  ourselves  every  evening,  'How  have 
I  approved  myself  unto  God  to-day]'  that  so,  the  thought 
of  God  may  pervade  and  hallow  the  whole  course  and 
current  of  our  lives. 

This  is  what  I  suppose  to  be  fairly  included  in  the 
exhortation  before  us.  A  lofty  requisition  it  certainly  is. 
Flesh  and  blood  cannot  compass  it.  It  runs  athwart  all 
our  native  passions ;  and  if  our  own  strength  were  our 
only  reliance,  we  might  as  well  attempt  to  create  a  sphere 
as  to  comply  with  it.  But  this  is  not  our'  dependence. 
He  who  calls  us  to  the  service,  offers  us  free  access  to 
his  resources :  and  these  are  higher  than  heaven,  and 
deeper  than  hell.  When  He  says,  'Ask,  and  ye  shall 
receive  :'  '  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  :'  '  I  will  never 
leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee:' — He  pledges  to  his  people 
all  the  aid  they  can  possibly  need  in  striving  to  ajxprove 
themselves  unto  God.  It  is  in  the  faith  of  promises  like 
these  that  \ve  are  to  address  ourselves  to  this  work.  Un- 
dertaken and  prosecuted  in  this  spirit,  the  feeblest  among 
us  need  not  shrink  from  the  greatness  of  the  task ;  while 
the  strongest  is  not  strong  enough  to  attempt  it  in  his 
own  might. 

Among  the  considerations  by  which  this  rule  may  be 
commended  to  our  adoption,  it  Avill  be  sufficient  to  men- 
tion a  very  few. 

1 .  It  is  no  arbitrary  rule,  but  one  which  springs  neces- 
sarily from  the  relation  in  which  we  stand  to  God.  The 
primary  obligation  of  all  creatures  to  the  Creator,  is  one 
of  those  intuitive  truths  which  no  reasoning  can  make 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  115 

more  palpable.  Not  to  demand  their  supreme  homage, 
would  be  for  the  Deity  to  abdicate  his  throne.  The  per- 
fection of  his  being  requires  that  every  intelligence  He 
forms,  should  make  his  will  the  guide  and  his  glory  the 
end  of  every  action.  "  For  of  Him,  and  through  Him, 
and  to  Him,  are  all  things." 

2.  It  is  the  only  rule  worthy  of  our  powers.  Even  if 
it  involved  no  sin,  it  were  an  indignity  to  our  rational 
nature  to  live  for  any  inferior  object.  If  God  did  not 
forbid,  there  is  a  witness  in  our  own  bosoms  that  would 
protest  against  it.  It  may  be,  and  probably  is,  a  very 
subordinate  place  in  the  scale  of  intelligent  beings,  which 
is  allotted  to  man.  But  his  present  position  is  no  index 
to  his  actual  endowments.  Growth  is  the  law  of  our 
existence.  An  infant  of  a  few  days  has  less  intelligence 
than  its  contemporary  of  almost  any  of  the  brute  races. 
But  the  germ  of  intellect  enslirined  in  that  tiny,  helpless 
form,  indestructible  by  the  law  of  its  creation,  is,  by  the 
same  law,  made  susceptible  of  an  indefinite  expansion. 
See  in  a  Milton  or  an  Edwards  what  a  stature  it  may 
reach  even  here,  clogged  with  a  perishable  body,  and  ex- 
posed to  sin  and  suffering.  Can  we  doubt  that  this  de- 
velopment is  to  go  on  with  an  accelerated  energy  when 
the  soul  ascends  to  the  great  Source  of  truth  and  becomes 
the  companion  of  angels'?  He  who  should  presume  to 
fix  a  limit  to  the  possible  acquisitions  of  an  intelligence 
like  the  human  soul,  would  shew  himself  a  traitor  to  his 
own  nature.  We  must  estimate  man  more  by  what  he 
may  become  in  the  vast  cycles  of  eternity.  And  viewing 
him  in  this  light,  it  were  in  derogation  of  the  essential 
dignity  of  his  nature  to  make  the  honour  and  will  of  any 
creature  the  end  and  rule  of  his  being.     In  God  alone 


116  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

can  he  find  a  position  equal  to  his  capacities ;  and  only 
by  striving  to  approve  himself  unto  God,  can  his  faculties 
be  properly  unfolded  and  matured  for  the  high  destiny 
that  awaits  him. 

3.  It  is  a  further  commendation  of  this  rule  that,  as 
distinguished  from  all  others,  it  is  simple,  uniform,  and 
stable.  Occasions  may  arise,  on  which  one  who  desires 
to  approve  himself  unto  God  may  be  involved  in  some 
perplexity.  But  a  conscientious  inquirer  will  not  ordi- 
narily be  left  long  in  the  dark.  The  will  of  God — the 
rule  prescribed  in  the  text — is  to  be  gathered  from  his 
word,  his  providence,  and  his  Spirit.  Chiefly  are  we  to 
seek  it  in  his  word.  And  whatever  difficulties  may  attach 
to  the  interpretation  of  certain  parts  of  Scripture,  the 
Bible  is,  on  the  whole,  a  plain  book.  Its  vital  doctrines 
have  disclosed  themselves  to  myriads  of  children  and 
unlettered  peasants ;  and  its  moral  precepts  are  written 
as  with  a  sunbeam.  If  in  respect  to  any  point  whether 
of  faith  or  practice,  an  inquirer  is  embarrassed,  he  has 
but  to  ask,  and  the  aid  of  an  infallible  Teacher  is  promised 
him.  The  code  thus  furnished  him  is  uniform  and  per- 
manent. It  utters  the  same  voice  in  all  lands  and  to  all 
people.  It  speaks  to-day,  as  it  spake  eighteen  centuries 
ago.  It  is  independent  of  human  authority.  It  concedes 
nothing  to  erudite  skepticism  or  popular  clamor ;  nothing 
to  the  throne  or  to  the  altar.  Knowing  neither  fear  nor 
favor,  subject  to  no  perturbation,  and  defeiTing  to  no 
other  power,  it  stands  from  age  to  age  unchanged  amidst 
a  changing  world, — a  rock  forever  swept  by  the  waves  of 
human  passion,  and  forever  unmoved. 

As  in  contrast  with  this  rule  of  life,  very  many  adopt 
as  their  guide  some  earthly  end  or  standard.     Multiform 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  II7 

as  these  are,  they  may  be  reduced  to  a  unit,  for  they  are 
stems  from  the  same  root.  The  will  of  God:  tlie  will  of 
man: — this  comprehends  the  whole.  With  or  without 
conscious  purpose,  we  all  choose  God's  will  or  man's,  as 
the  law  of  our  lives.  For  the  latter  properly  compre- 
hends supreme  devotion  to  the  world  in  whatever  form. 
Where  we  are  not  serving  the  Creator,  we  are  serving 
the  creature.  If  we  do  not  worship  the  true  God,  we 
worship  some  idol.  "Approved  unto  God,"  or  approved 
unto  man : — this  divides  the  race.  And  how  untowardly 
for  the  latter  class,  must  be  apparent  at  a  glance.  For 
considered  as  a  rule  of  duty,  the  will  of  man  has  not 
one  attribute  to  recommend  it.  It  is  without  authority : 
for  the  Lawgiver  has  never  delegated  this  control  over 
man's  conscience,  to  his  felloAvs.  As  the  will  of  a  de- 
praved and  benighted  race,  it  lacks  the  first  element  of 
an  ethical  code,  rectitude.  To  follow  it  would  be  oftener 
to  do  wrong  than  right.  It  is  fluctuating  and  uncertain. 
It  varies  perpetually — is  one  thing  in  this  country,  and 
another  in  that ;  one  thing  to-day,  and  another  to-mor- 
row. AVho  can  trim  his  sails  to  the  capricious  gales  of 
popular  favor  1  Or  who  can  surrender  himself  to  the 
sway  of  his  selfish  passions — making  his  own  will  the 
rule  of  his  life — without  discovering  very  soon  that  he  is 
serving  a  most  arbitrary  master]  It  is  a  service,  too,  as 
hurtful  to  the  character  and  as  fatal  to  true  happiness,  as 
the  opposite  service  is  elevating  and  satisfying. 

4.  This,  indeed,  should  be  mentioned  as  a  distinct  and 
cardinal  merit  of  the  rule  enjoined  in  the  text — its  bene- 
ficent influence  upon  the  character.  We  shall  see  this 
as  we  go  on ;  as  we  shall,  no  less,  the  injurious  eff'ects  of 
the  opposite  rule.     But  it  may  be  observed  here,  that  no 


118  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

one'  can  faithfully  adopt  as  his  motto,  the  sentiment, 
"approved  unto  God,"  without  reaping  from  it  the  most 
substantial  benefits.  For,  not  to  speak  of  the  affluent 
blessings  direct  from  the  Divine  hand  to  which  such  an 
one  becomes  heir,  the  principle  thus  enthroned  in  the 
heart  has  a  ready  affinity  for  whatsoever  things  are  pure, 
lovely,  and  of  good  report.  It  is  essentially  restraining, 
invigorating,  elevating,  and  comforting.  It  is  usually 
marked  by  a  waking  up  of  dormant  and  neglected  pow- 
ers. And  this  is  what  we  all  need.  For  who  is  there 
that  has  not  more  than  one  talent  laid  by  in  a  napkin  ] 
Here  and  there  an  honorable  exception  may  be  noted ; 
but,  for  the  most  part,  it  is  only  a  partial  and  precarious 
service  we  render  to  God.  Instead  of  '  bringing  all  the 
tithes  into  his  storehouse,'  we  too  often  pacify  conscience 
by  offering  Him  the  '  blind  and  the  lame  and  the  sick  for 
sacrifice.'  The  time  is  yet  to  come  when  the  Church 
shall  lay  all  her  treasures  at  the  Saviour's  feet.  But  this 
day  is  dawning  upon  him  who  strives  in  good  faith  to 
live  "  approved  unto  God."  For  he  will  rouse  himself 
from  his  slumber,  and  take  all  his  gifts  of  heart  and 
mind, — his  intellectual  powers  and  his  affections,  his 
learning  and  experience,  his  taste  and  culture,  his  time 
and  opportunities, — and  present  them  to  his  Master,  with 
the  humble  prayer,  '  What  will  thou  have  me  to  do  ?' 

Such  a  disciple  will  not  neglect  the  due  cultivation  of 
his  powers.  Whatever  they  may  be,  they  are  entrusted 
to  him  that  he  may  improve  and  use  them.  The  pos-. 
session  of  a  gift  carries  this  obligation  with  it,  as  it  often 
decides  one's  profession  for  life.  One  man  is  plainly 
designated  of  God  to  be  a  painter,  another  a  sculptor,  a 
third  a  physician,  a  fourth  an   astronomer,  and  so  on. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  HQ 

These  are  special  cases  which  interpret  themselves.  But 
in  all  cases  the  law  in  the  text  requires  that  we  cultivate 
our  several  endowments  to  the  very  best  of  our  ability, 
and  that  we  do  our  work  in  the  best  style  we  can  com- 
mand. This  will  be  the  feeling  and  aim  of  those  who 
have  sincerely  accepted  it  as  their  maxim,  "  approved 
unto  God."  And  living  under  the  habitual  pressure  of 
a  force  at  once  so  powerful  and  so  ameliorating,  they  will 
increase  rapidly  in  knowledge  and  holiness,  and  the  'joy 
of  the  Lord'  will  be  their  '  strength.' 

5.  It  may  be  added  once  more,  in  commendation  ot 
this  rule,  that  it  proposes  the  only  scheme  of  life  which 
can  fit  us  for  the  duties  and  trials  of  the  present  world, 
or  prepare  us  for  the  happiness  of  heaven. 

But  I  waive  this  topic.  It  will  recur  incidentally,  as 
will  the  other  topics  that  have  been  touched  upon  in 
connection  with  the  application  of  the  rule  before  us  to 
our  several  relations  and  interests.  We  have  learned 
what  the  rule  imports ;  and,  adopting  it  as  our  motto  for 
this  opening  year,  we  are  now  to  inquire  what  it  may 
require  of  us  in  respect  to  some  few  of  the  experiences 
which  the  year  will  be  likely  to  bring  with  it. 

We  begin  with  the  most  important  of  aU,  our  religious 
belief.,  but  only  to  say  a  word  or  two. 

The  world  is  full  of  sects  and  creeds ;  not,  as  to  many 
of  them,  differing  radically  from  one  another,  but  all 
contributing  to  make  up  that  scene  of  confusion  which 
is  so  embarrassing  to  a  seeker  after  truth.  There  would 
be  slight  encouragement  to  set  out  on  such  a  quest  if  it 
were  necessary  to  go  the  round  of  all  the  churches  and 
investigate  the  history  and  the  tenets  of  each  of  them. 
Happily,  this  perplexing  service  is  not  laid  upon  us.    Faith 


120  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

is  a  personal  act,  an  exercise  of  the  individual,  not  of  the 
multitude.  The  concurrence  of  a  large,  intelligent,  and 
devout  denomination  in  a  particular  creed  or  confession 
may  properly  commend  it  to  our  favorable  consideration, 
but  we  need  some  other  warrant  for  our  faith.  It  must 
not  stand  in  the  wisdom  of  men,  but  in  the  power  of 
God.  The  simple  canon  by  which  \\g  are  to  be  guided 
in  this  inquiry  is,  "  approved  unto  God."  What  has  God 
taught  1  Is  this  doctrine  contained  in  his  word  1  Does 
it  come  to  me  inscribed  with,  '  Thus  saith  the  Lord  V 
Here  is  the  test  of  truth.  All  else  is  as  the  small  dust  of 
the  balance.  It  is  the  Divine  injunction,  '  Prove  all 
things :  hold  fast  that  which  is  good.'  And  pursuing 
your  researches  in  this  spirit,  resolved,  as  He  may  assist 
you,  simply  to  approve  yourselves  to  God  in  the  matter 
of  your  belief,  and  diligently  studying  the  Scriptures, 
you  icill  be  guided  into  the  truth. 

In  framing  our  schemes  of  life  there  is  large  room  for 
the  exercise  of  this  rule.  The  toiling  masses,  it  is  true, 
have  no  room  for  choice.  Their  scheme  of  life  is  made 
for  them,  and  they  have  to  accept  it,  as  the  patient  ox 
bows  his  neck  to  the  yoke.  But  are  they,  therefore,  re- 
leased from  the  obligation  of  this  rule,  or  excluded  from 
its  advantages '?  Far  from  it.  It  is  at  once  the  impera- 
tive duty  and  the  high  privilege  of  all  the  tribes  of  labor 
to  make  it  the  controlling  principle  of  their  lives,  "  ap- 
proved unto  God."  They  are  no  less  the  subjects  of  his 
government ;  no  less  the  objects  of  his  care  than  those 
who  are  clothed  in  purple  and  fine  linen.  Nor  is  it  less 
in  their  power  to  glorify  his  name.  For  all  true  service 
is  really  paid  "  to  the  Lord,  and  not  to  men."  And  this 
is  the  spirit  which  should  be  carried  into  every  sphere  of 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  121 

manual  labor, — into  all  the  mines  and  workshops  and 
manufactories  of  the  world,  and  wherever  there  are  toil- 
ing men  or  toiling  women  and  children.  "  Approved 
unto  God !"  Could  you  hang  this  up  over  all  your 
lathes,  and  looms,  and  forges,  and  engines  ;  let  me  rather 
say,  could  you  have  it  securely  lodged  in  your  hearts  by 
Him  who  alone  can  put  anything  good  within  us,  what 
a  new  world  it  would  open  to  you !  How  much  it  would 
do  to  absolve  your  labor  from  the  primeval  curse,  and 
smooth  your  rugged  paths,  and  diffuse  a  sweet  serenity 
through  your  breasts,  and  reconcile  you  to  the  allotments 
of  Providence,  and  endear  to  you  the  precious  words  and 
the  patient  suffering  of  Him  who  '  had  not  where  to  lay 
his  head!"  If  you  have  not  yet  made  proof  of  it,  if  you 
have  been  working  year  after  year  with  no  master  but 
iron  necessity,  and  no  reward  but  your  scant  wages,  sup- 
pose you  come  up  out  of  this  subterranean  prison-life 
into  the  nobler  sphere  of  Christian  service,  where  you 
can  see  the  light  of  your  Father's  face,  and  hear  his 
loving  voice,  and  feel  that  you  have  something  to  live 
for.  He  will  help  you  out  of  your  bondage  if  you  ask 
Him.  And  then  if  you  will  cast  away  your  own  wisdom, 
and  the  maxims  which  have  hitherto  controlled  you,  and 
make  it  throughout  this  year  the  one  settled  principle  of 
your  lives,  "  approved  unto  God,"  your  repining  will  all 
be  turned  to  thankfulness,  and  your  mourning  to  praise. 
To  advert  to  other  classes: — you  have  your  plans  of  life, 
comprehending  your  several  avocations,  the  distribution 
of  your  time,  and  other  particulars.  These  plans  may 
or  may  not  have  been  deliberately  framed ;  enough  that 
they  are  practically  adopted.  May  the  question  be  al- 
lowed, '  Have  you  submitted  them  to  God's  approval  ■? 


122  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

Have  you  consulted  Him  as  to  all  your  habits  and 
methods  \  And  do  you  see  the  hours  speed  away  with 
the  feeling  that  they  have  been  spent  as  He  would  have 
had  you  spend  themT  If  so,  nothing  remains  to  be  sug- 
gested on  this  point.  But  if  otherwise,  suppose  you  pause 
long  enough  to  revise  your  schemes  of  life  by  the  light 
of  this  simple  maxim,  "  approved  unto  God."  It  may 
be  that,  holding  this  lamp  in  your  hands,  you  will  detect 
some  mistakes  which  you  wdll  be  glad  to  rectify.  You 
may  discover  hours  habitually  surrendered  to  sleep  or 
sloth,  which  ought  to  be  reclaimed.  You  may  learn  that 
you  are  allowing  a  wretched  parsimony  to  prescribe  the 
time  that  shall  be  devoted  to  your  private  religious  du- 
ties ;  and  that,  unless  your  household  altars  be  repaired, 
they  will  soon  fall  to  pieces.  You  may  find  that  the 
irresistible  tide  of  business  is  steadily  extending  its  en- 
croachments into  the  realm  of  your  domestic  life,  and 
threatening  to  submerge  your  every  social,  and  almost 
your  every  spiritual,  interest.  You  may  find  that  the 
things  that  are  seen  have  usurped  the  place  which  belongs 
to  the  things  that  are  not  seen  ;  that  the  current  of  world- 
liness  has  been  imperceptibly  swaying  you  away  from 
3'^our  only  safe  anchorage ;  and  that,  however  it  may 
fare  with  your  estate,  your  spiritual  husbandry  has  more 
the  meagre  aspect  of  a  field  left  for  the  gleaners,  than 
one  that  has  not  yet  felt  the  sickle.  I  do  not  affirm  that  this 
would  be  the  result.  But  it  might  prove  so  wdth  some 
of  us.  And,  in  any  event,  it  must  be  of  wholesome  ten- 
dency to  look  into  our  plans  for  the  opening  year  and  see 
whether  we  are  able  with  a  good  conscience  to  impress 
upon  every  one  of  them  the  pregnant  inscription,  "  ap- 
proved unto  God." 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  193 

In  commenting  upon  the  usurpations  of  business,  I 
mean  no  disparagement  of  its  just  claims.  But  the  refer- 
ence may  fitly  remind  us  that  here  is  another  sphere  into 
which  it  is  all-important  to  carry  the  sentiment,  "  ap- 
proved unto  God."  Of  the  duties  and  dangers,  the 
privileges  and  responsibilities,  of  a  commercial  life,  I 
have  spoken  to  you  so  fully  in  a  series  of  lectures  which 
is  within  your  reach,  that  you  will  not  expect  me  at  any 
time  to  go  into  the  subject  again  in  detail.  But  I  miist 
press  this  inspired  rule  upon  the  business  men  here.  And, 
if  your  kindness  will  indulge  me,  I  will  do  it  by  quoting 
a  brief  paragraph  from  the  volume  just  mentioned,  which 
falls  in  precisely  with  the  aim  of  this  discourse. 

'  There  may  be  those  who  will  deem  it  a  very  super- 
fluous and  a  very  puritanical  procedure  to  undertake  to 
set  up  the  Bible  as  the  grand  regulator  of  commerce. 
But  how  is  commerce  to  be  exempted  from  its  jurisdic- 
tion \  Who  is  empowered  to  say,  '  We  will  have  the 
Bible  in  our  houses,  our  schools,  our  churches,  our  chari- 
ties ;  but  it  shall  not  come  into  our  stores.  We  are  quite 
willing  to  live  by  it,  and  to  die  by  it,  and  to  go  to  heaven 
by  it ;  but,  as  to  trafficking  by  it,  that  is  out  of  the  ques- 
tion.' It  may  well  happen  that  to  subject  the  entire 
business  world  to  this  regimen,  to  replace  prescription, 
usage,  expediency,  and  every  spurious  rule,  with  the  pre- 
cepts of  Scripture,  would  lead  to  inconvenience  and  losses. 
It  might  require  some  persons  to  abandon  the  business 
they  are  engaged  in,  and  abridge  the  profits  of  others. 
But  what  alternative  is  there  I  "I  had  rather  be  right," 
said  one  of  our  great  statesmen  a  few  years  ago, — and 
the  remark  is  quoted  oftener  than  anything  he  ever  said, — 
"  I  had  rather  be  right  than  be  President."     You  all 


124  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

applaud  the  sentiment.  You  honor  the  memory  of  Henry 
Clay  because  he  uttered  it.  We  do  but  apply  it  to  your 
own  profession  when  we  insist  upon  your  enthroning  it 
in  your  counting-houses.  We  press  it  upon  you  as  the 
one  controlling,  unalterable,  indispensable  rule  of  life,  that 
you  do  right.  It  may  demand  sacrifices.  It  may  cost 
you  many  a  trial  of  feeling.  It  may  separate  you  from 
friends.  It  may  expose  you  to  reproach.  These  are 
serious  evils.  They  are  to  be  shunned,  if  they  can  be, 
with  a  good  conscience.  But,  if  you  have  to  choose  be- 
tween them  and  a  good  conscience,  you  cannot  be  at  a 
loss  where  truth  and  duty  lie.  It  is  not  necessary  that 
you  should  escape  trouble,  but  it  is  necessary  that  you 
should  do  right  ;'*  in  other  words,  let  me  add,  it  is  neces- 
sary that,  in  all  the  plans  and  transactions  of  your  count- 
ing-rooms and  factories,  you  should  study  to  show  your- 
selves "  approved  unto  God."  And  if  you  do  this,  what- 
ever may  be  its  financial  results,  you  will  hereafter  re- 
view this  year  with  grateful  praise  to  the  Giver  of  all 
good. 

Nor  is  this  lesson  designed  only  for  the  walks  of  com- 
merce. It  pertains  to  all  professions  and  employments, 
to  both  sexes,  and  to  all  ages.  The  purport  of  it  is  that 
we  are  to  pursue  our  respective  avocations  in  the  way 
which  we  believe  God  will  sanction.  The  precept  was 
given  to  Timothy  for  the  regulation  of  his  studies  and 
preaching :  "  Study  to  show  thyself  approved  unto  God, 
a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed,  rightly 
dividing  the  word  of  truth."  In  other  words,  so  preach 
as  to  secure  God's  approval.     And  of  course,  if  it  belong 

*  "  The  Bible  in  the  Counting-house,"  Lecture  II. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  125 

to  ministers  to  preach  thus,  it  must  belong  equally  to  the 
people  to  hear  thus.  The  obligation  is  reciprocal ;  we 
are  to  preach  and  to  hear  just  as  well  as  we  know  how, 
for  our  common  Master  will  be  satisfied  with  nothing 
less.  The  same  is  true  of  the  other  professions.  It  is 
no  more  the  duty  of  a  minister  of  the  Gospel  than  of  a 
lawyer,  a  physician,  a  teacher,  to  adhere  to  it  as  the  rule 
of  their  lives,  "  approved  unto  God."  They  are  asking 
themselves,  '  AVhat  do  I  owe  to  my  pupil,  my  patient,  my 
client  V  But  they  may  satisfy  these  parties  and  yet  fail 
in  their  duty.  The  paramount  question  is,  '  What  does 
God  require  of  me]'  for  all  duty  terminates  in  God. 
And  while  this  question  must  be  variously  answered, 
according  to  the  circumstances  of  each  particular  case, 
it  may  facilitate  the  solution  to  have  it  impressed  upon 
the  mind,  that  He  will  have  us  carry  into  any  sphere  to 
which  He  may  appoint  us  our  best  abilities,  and  do  our 
work  thoroughly,  loolving  to  Him  for  help,  and  feeling 
that  his  favor  is  the  noblest  of  all  rewards. 

But  another  department  claims  our  notice.  We  must 
carry  our  rule  into  the  domain  of  politics.  I  do  not 
mean  by  this  simply  that  statesmen  and  professed  politi- 
cians are  of  right  bound  by  this  rule,  but  that  we  ought 
all  to  recognize  it  in  our  several  relations  and  functions 
as  citizens.  We  can  none  of  us  escape  from  our  obliga- 
tions to  the  State.  It  were  ungenerous  to  desire  to  do 
so.  The  Church  alone  excepted,  there  is  no  institution 
fraught  with  such  manifold  blessings  to  mankind  as  a 
wise  and  just  government  faithfully  administered.  V^e 
have  had  experience  of  this  beyond  almost  any  other 
people.  Common  gratitude,  therefore,. demands  that  we 
do  all  in  our  poAver  to  preserve  our  constitution  and  lib- 


12G  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

ertics  inviolate,  and  to  promote  generally  tlie  well-being 
of  our  country.  Had  the  Christian  men  of  the  country 
been  true  to  this  trust  in  past  years,  this  fatal  war  would 
have  been  averted.  It  may  be  one  of  the  dearly-bought 
lessons  of  the  Avar  to  teach  such  men  the  sacred  duty 
of  carrying  it  into  the  whole  routine  of  civil  life  as  their 
guiding  principle,  "  approved  unto  God." 

This  obligation  comprehends  the  formation  and  ex- 
pression of  our  political  opinion,  the  exercise  of  the  right 
of  suffrage,  the  maintenance  of  the  just  authority  of  the 
magistracy,  submission  to  the  laws,  the  repression  of  treason 
and  rebellion,  and  the  furthering  of  such  measures  as  we 
believe  to  be  adapted  to-  preserve  intact  our  civil  char- 
ters, and  to  secure  the  inestimable  privileges  we  have 
enjoyed  to  those  who  are  to  come  after  us.  In  reference 
to  these  and  their  kindred  duties,  we  have  no  right  to 
defer  to  any  other  rule  than  this, — "  approved  unto  God." 
However  common  it  may  be  to  divorce  politics  and  re- 
ligion, we  cannot  sanction  the  disjunction  without  so  far 
contemning  the  supremacy  of  the  great  LaAvgiver ;  for  He 
has  no  more  exempted  the  State  from  his  jurisdiction 
than  the  Church. 

Let  it  be  understood,  then,  that  Ave  are  responsible  to 
God  for  our  political  sentiments  and  conduct,  and  that 
these  are  to  be  regulated  by  a  reverential  regard  to  his 
Avord  and  Avill.  Here  is  our  standard,  as  distinguished 
from  all  spurious  standards.  The  only  one  of  these  to 
Avhich  I  shall  advert  is  'partij.  I  am  not  going  to  de- 
claim against  the  existence  of  political  parties.  They 
are  the  legitimate  and  salutary  fruit  of  free  institutions. 
The  absence  of  parties  is  the  badge  of  a  despotism ;  for 
the  manacled  are  always  passive.    It  must  also  be  conceded 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  127 

that  conscientious  men  will  ordinarily,  be  able  to  act  in 
the  main  with  some  party, — the  only  way  in  which  they 
can  aid  effectively  in  sustaining,  modifying,  or  reversing 
the  current  policy.  But  implicit  devotion  to  a  party  in 
all  its  plans  and  expedients,  concurrence  in  its  theories 
and  measures,  purely  because  they  come  from  the  party 
mint,  and  have  the  party  brand, — this  is  not  only  unworthy 
of  any  freeman,  but  it  is  incompatible  with  loyalty  to 
God.  He  who  thus  sells  himself  to  a  party  must  make 
up  his  mind  not  only  to  some  very  irksome  things,  but 
to  things  of  a  very  equivocal  morality.  He  will  have  to 
support  men  and  measures  that  are  offensive  to  him ;  and 
he  may  even  be  required  to  repudiate  principles  he  has 
held  all  his  life,  and  adopt  others  which  he  has  always 
reprobated. 

It  must  in  candor  be  admitted  that  the  opposite  course 
also  has  its  inconveniences.  IMen  who  think  for  them- 
selves on  political  subjects,  and  who  carry  their  religion 
into  their  politics,  framing  their  opinions  on  public  affairs 
with  a  predominant  regard  to  the  Divine  will,  and  re- 
solved never  to  sacrifice  reason  and  conscience  to  popu- 
larity, must  count  upon  being  traduced  where  they  ought 
to  be  commended.  Refusing  to  bow  to  the  mandates  of 
party,  or  to  succumb  to  the  passions  of  the  hour,  they 
are  usually  misapprehended  and  taunted  by  men  of  all 
parties.  Nor  need  it  occasion  them  any  surprise  if  they 
even  incur  the  reproaches  of  friends.  If  you  mean  to  be 
conscientious  and  independent  in  your  politics,  you  will 
have  to  school  your  sensibility  to  censure,  whether  from 
friends  or  foes.  A  painful  thing  it  certainly  is  to  have 
your  fidelity  to  God  requited  with  the  estrangement  of 
those  who  may  have  had  a  warm  place  in  your  affections. 


128  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

But,  if  the  alternative  is  forced  upon  you,  you  liavc  no 
right  to  hesitate.  This  was  famihar  ground  to  St.  Paul, 
and  here  was  his  mode  of  meeting  it : — "  With  me  it  is  a 
very  small  thing  that  I  should  be  judged  of  you  or  of 
man's  judgment."  "  For  do  I  now  persuade  men  or  God "? 
or  do  I  seek  to  please  men  1  for  if  I  yet  pleased  men,  I 
should  not  be  the  servant  of  Christ." 

The  afflicted  condition  of  our  country  invests  this  topic 
with  so  much  interest,  and  you  will  have  to  act  upon  it 
so  constantly  throughout  the  year,  that  I  may  be  allowed 
to  illustrate  the  principle  of  the  text,  in  its  application 
to  public  affairs,  by  an  example  drawn  from  modern  his- 
tory. The  name  and  fame  of  William  Wilberforce  be- 
long to  the  Christian  world.  On  his  first  entrance  into 
the  House  of  Commons,  which  he  astonished  and  capti- 
vated by  his  singular  eloquence,  Mr.  Pitt  took  him  cor- 
dially by  the  hand,  and  gave  him  his  friendship  and  his 
confidence.  A  generous  intimacy  sprang  up  between 
them.  After  the  lapse  of  five  years,  during  which  Wil- 
berforce had  given  his  unvarying  and  powerful  support 
to  the  measures  of  his  friend,  he  found  himself  compelled 
to  dissent  from  his  policy  on  the  Frencli  war.  He  fore- 
saw the  consequences,  and  would  gladly  have  averted 
them.  He  knew  that  his  steadfast  adherence  to  the  ad- 
ministration on  all  other  points  would  go  for  nothing  if 
he  drew  back  on  tlie  particular  question  then  pending ; 
that  his  motives  would  be  impugned ;  that  tlie  opposition 
would  exult  over  what  would  be  represented  as  his  de- 
fection from  the  government ;  and  that  he  must  even 
count  upon  the  personal  alienation  of  his  cherished 
friend,  the  great  minister.  But  none  of  these  things 
moved  him.     He  had  decided  upon  his  course  with  the 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  129 

most  careful  deliberation — even  observing  a  day  of  fast- 
ing and  prayer,  that  he  might  suitably  invoke  wisdom 
and  strength  from  above.  And  then  he  went  forward 
sadly,  but  resolutely,  to  the  work  his  conscience  had  laid 
upon  him.  He  made  his  speech,  and  was  in  no  way  sur- 
prised at  the  result.  The  trials  he  had  anticipated,  came ; 
and  "  they  were  increased  by  the  expressed  disagreement 
of  almost  all  those  personal  friends  with  whom  he  most 
freely  communicated  upon  political  questions,  and  by  the 
concurrent  accounts  they  forwarded  him,  from  different 
parts  of  the  country,  of  the  disapprobation  of  his  conduct 
generally  felt  by  sober-minded  men."  Most  bitter  of  all 
the  ingredients  in  this  cup,  was  the  estrangement  of  Pitt ; 
who,  to  his  honor  be  it  spoken,  felt  the  trial  beyond 
almost  any  other  of  his  life.  For  it  is  recorded  of  him 
that  in  his  whole  public  career  there  were  but  two  events 
which  were  able  to  disturb  his  sleep, — the  mutiny  at 
the  Nore,  and  "the  first  open  opposition  of  Mr.  Wilber- 
force."  It  will  interest  you  to  know,  that  this  inflexible 
fidelity  to  Christian  principle  received  its  reward  even 
here.  For  only  a  brief  six  months  had  passed,  before 
the  illustrious  statesman  became  an  avowed  convert  to 
Wilberforce's  views,  and  their  old  friendship  was  re- 
newed. 

I  place  this  example  before  you  the  more  readily,  be- 
cause there  has  never  been  a  period  in  our  own  history 
when  this  high  moral  principle  was  more  needed  in  our 
politics  than  it  is  now.  The  influence  you  can  exert  in 
helping  to  bring  this  war  to  an  end  may  be  great  or 
small :  that  is  not  material.  But  it  is  material  that  it 
spring  from  a  patriotism  which  draws  its  inspiration  not 
from  earth  but  from  heaven ;  not  from  the  public  Jour- 


130        MOTTOES  FOR  THE  N"EW  YEAR. 

nals,  not  from  Legislative  debates,  not  from  the  magis- 
tracy, not  from  your  friends,  but  from  God.  Only  aim, 
like  AYilbcrforce,  to  show  yourselves,  in  all  your  political 
sentiments  and  conduct,  'approved  unto  God;'  and  how- 
ever it  may  fall  with  you  for  the  time,  that  country  to 
which  we  all  owe  so  much,  and  for  whose  unity,  peace, 
and  lasting  prosperity,  we  should  be  willing  to  make  any 
sacrifice  compatible  with  our  duty  to  God,  will  one  day 
appreciate  and  honour  your  fidelity  to  her  cause. 

It  is  no  violent  transition  if  we  venture  for  a  moment 
or  two  into  the  realm  of  social  life.  A  broad  realm  it  is, 
comprehending  all  questions  of  dress,  furniture,  enter- 
tainments, friendships,  amusements,  and  many  other 
matters.  A  great  and  rare  achievement  it  would  be  to 
bring  this  wide  field  of  restless,  ever-changeful  activity, 
into  complete  accord  with  that  high  prescription,  "  ap- 
proved unto  God."  How  much  the  adoption  of  this  rule 
would  simplify  the  mechanism  of  social  life !  What 
facility  it  would  afford  in  resolving  the  little  problems 
which  are  daily  arising  in  every  household ;  and  in  dimin- 
ishing the  friction  that  is  observed  in  so  many  homes ! 
Take  a  single  one  of  the  subjects  just  enunciated.  There 
are  few  Christian  families  in  which  the  question  of  amuse- 
ments does  not  come  up  for  debate  with  more  or  less 
frequency.  The  present  winter  will  form  no  exception 
to  this  familiar  experience.  It  is  true,  we  are  in  the 
midst  of  a  bloody  war.  But  nations  scourged  with  Divine 
judgments  usually  plunge  into  flagrant  excesses.  The 
English  Court,  then  at  Oxford,  was  never  more  aban- 
doned to  drinking,  gambling,  and  licentiousness,  than 
while  the  Great  Plague  was  desolating  London.  Indeed, 
"  it  was  a  time  (as  a  contemporary  annalist  says)  when 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \^\ 

all  license  in  discourse  and  in  actions  was  spread  over 
the  kingdom,  to  the  heart-breaking  of  many  good  men, 
who  had  terrible  apprehensions  of  the  consequence  of  it." 
The  same  thing  has  usually  occurred  in  time  of  war. 
And  as  History  constantly  repeats  itself,  a  philosophical 
observer  might  be  prepared  for  the  revolting  spectacle 
now  presented  among  ourselves.  While  death  and  sor- 
row are  flapping  their  raven  wings  over  the  land — the 
cry  of  our  slain  coming  up  from  a  hundred  battle-fields, 
and  widows  and  orphans  crowding  the  thoroughfares, 
our  great  cities  are  resigning  themselves  to  frivolity  and 
revelry.  Never  in  peace  did  they  witness  such  dissipa- 
tion ;  never  were  places  of  amusement  so  numerous  or 
so  thronged.  It  is  meet,  therefore,  that  families  which 
profess  some  regard  for  the  word  and  worship  of  God, 
should  decide  how  far  their  sanction  is  to  be  given  to 
these  practices.  With  many  persons,  considerations  of 
taste,  of  decorum,  of  sympathy  for  the  afflicted,  of  the 
respect  which  is  due  to  a  severe  public  calamity,  will  be 
decisive.  But  if  you  still  hesitate  about  the  theatre,  the 
opera,  balls,  and  the  like,  you  may  gather  some  light 
from  the  test  the  apostle  has  given  us,  "  approved 
unto  God."  You  will  not  deny  that  this  is  our  proper 
rule.  Do  not  shrink,  then,  from  applying  it  to  these 
amusements.  If  you  find  that  they  have  the  sanction 
of  the  infallible  word ;  that  where  it  says  '  Ye  are  not  of 
the  world,'  '  Be  not  conformed  to  this  world,'  it  has  no 
reference  to  such  matters  as  these ;  and  that,  in  respect 
to  amusements,  there  need  be  no  difference  between  the 
world  and  the  church ; — if  you  can  take  these  things  to 
the  throne  of  grace,  and  after  asking  Divine  illumination, 
deliberately  conclude  that  they  are  "approved  of  God;" 


132  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

you  will  of  course  fall  in  with  the  prevailing  cuircnt,  and 
drink  your  fill  at  these  intoxicating  fountains.  Whether 
the  retrospect  will  be  as  grateful  as  the  excitement  of  the 
moment,  is  another  question.  Meanwhile  my  errand  is 
fulfilled  by  merely  counselling  you  to  forbear  the  coveted 
indulgence,  unless  you  can  lay  your  head  upon  your  pil- 
low, after  it  is  over,  with  the  feeling,  "  approved  unto 
God." 

Let  us  close  by  again  adverting  to  the  paramount  de- 
mands of  personal  religion.  '•How  can  I  make  the  most 
of  life  T  This  is,  or  should  be,  the  question  with  us  all. 
And  it  finds  its  ready  answer  in  the  lesson  of  the  text, 
"  approved  unto  God."  Guided  by  this  principle,  the 
opening  year  would  see  us  engaging  in  the  service  of  our 
Master,  with  new  ardor.  Its  effects  would  be  witnessed 
in  the  prevalence  of  a  more  elevated  tone  of  piety 
amongst  us ;  in  the  diligent  culture  of  the  Christian 
graces ;  and  in  more  resolute  efforts  to  protect  the  church 
from  that  flood  of  worldliness  which  threatens  to  sub- 
merge, not  only  '  all  the  high  hills  that  are  under  the 
whole  heaven,'  but  the  very  ark  itself  It  would  tell 
with  power  upon  the  cause  of  Christian  benevolence — 
greatly  augmenting  the  willing  offerings  to  the  Lord's 
treasury,  and  thus  enlarging  the  sphere  of  missionary 
enterprise  at  home  and  abroad.  It  would  develop  the 
sleeping  energies  of  the  church,  and  send  fresh  laborers 
into  Sunday-Schools,  Home-missions,  and  other  fields 
white  to  the  harvest.  It  would  enkindle  a  new  and  just 
solicitude  for  the  rescue  of  the  unconverted,  and  arouse 
ministers  and  people  to  greater  exertions  for  their  salva- 
tion. It  would  inform  and  sanctify  the  spirit  of  patriot- 
ism, and  give  our  country  in   this   time  of  her  deep 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  133 

affliction,  a  still  warmer  place  in  the  affections  and  pray- 
ers of  God's  people.  It  would  help  the  tempted,  the 
suffering,  the  bereaved,  to  acknowledge  a  Father's  hand 
in  their  trials,  and  might  even  turn  their  lamentations 
into  thanksgivings. 

These,  and  such  as  these,  are  the  benign  fruits  tliat 
would  flow  from  the  general  and  hearty  adoption  of  the 
maxim  we  have  been  considering.  It  were  superfluous 
to  say,  that  He  alone  whose  glory  it  contemplates,  could 
write  it  upon  our  hearts  or  keep  it  there.  But,  assured 
that  He  is  more  willing  to  do  this  than  we  to  ask  Him,  I 
respectfully  and  affectionately  commend  it  to  you  as  your 
rule  of  life  for  this  new  year.  Time  is  swiftly  bearing 
us  onward  to  eternity.  We  none  of  us  know  that  we 
are  to  witness  the  return  of  this  anniversary.  There  are 
many  seats  vacant  here  to-day  which  were  filled  a  twelve- 
month since  by  those  who  were  then  exhorted  to  take 
it  as  their  text  for  the  year,  "  Waiting  for  the  coming 
OF  THE  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  And  knowing  that  death 
must  be  poising  other  shafts  which  are  to  lay  some  of  us 
low  during  this  year,  I  entreat  you  all,  as  I  would  ad- 
monish myself,  to  supplicate  the  Father  of  lights,  for 
grace  to  live,  and  should  He  so  appoint,  for  grace  to  die, 
by  the  ordinance  of  his  own  blessed  word,  '  approved 
UNTO  God.' 


1865. 


YIII. 
''TO  EVERY  MAN  HIS  WORK." 

MARK  XIII.  34. 


Our  Saviour  is  admonishing  his  disciples  of  the  cer- 
tainty of  his  second  coming,  and  the  uncertainty  of  the 
time  when  it  would  take  place.  He  compares  Himself 
in  this  view  to  "  a  man  taking  a  far  journey,  who  left  his 
house  and  gave  authority  to  his  servants,  and  to  every 
man  his  work,  and  commanded  the  porter  to  watch." 
We  need  not  consider  this  comparison  in  its  details.  A 
single  point  only  demands  our  attention.  On  this  New- 
Year's  morning  you  look  for  me  to  offer  you  a  text  for  the 
opening  year.  You  have  just  listened  to  it : — "  To  every 
man  his  work." 

Let  this  be  our  year  text.  It  will  not  be  difficult  to 
show  how  well  it  is  suited  to  this  purpose. 

The  relation  of  authority  and  subjection, — this  is  the 
prime  idea  of  the  passage.  We  dwell  chiefly  upon  the  Son 
of  God  as  a  Saviour ;  it  is  natural  we  should.  But  He  is 
as  much  a  King  as  a  Saviour.  He  is  the  very  '  King  of 
kings.'  '  By  Him  kings  reign,  and  princes  decree  justice.' 
His  kingdom  is  a  universal  kingdom.  'All  power  is 
given  to  Him  in  heaven  and  in  earth.'  And  in  Him  all 
creatures  'live  and  move,  and  have  their  being.'     Abso- 

(135) 


136  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR, 

lute  dominion  belongs  to  Him  as  the  Second  Person  of 
the  Trinity.  But  his  sovereignty  over  our  race  is  also 
exercised  in  virtue  of  his  Mediatorial  character.  He 
received  it  of  the  Father  as  the  reward  of  his  sufferings. 

The  kingdom  thus  bestowed  upon  Him  is  a  kingdom 
of  service.  It  is  by  no  fiction  of  law  that  men  are  styled 
his  '  servants.'  They  are  his  servants.  He  is  their  Lord. 
He  challenges  a  control  over  them  which  is  minute,  con- 
stant, and  universal.  It  embraces  every  human  being. 
It  extends  to  all  their  powers,  and  to  every  moment  of 
their  lives.  He  requires  every  one  to  serve  Him,  and 
assigns  to  each  the  work  he  is  to  do.  "  To  every  man 
his  work."  Language  cannot  go  beyond  this.  It  takes 
in  every  sphere  of  life,  every  grade  of  talent,  and  every 
variety  of  gifts. 

Few  persons  believe  this.  The  common  feeling  is,  that 
Christ  controls  the  prime  arrangements  of  society  and  great 
events,  that  He  superintends  the  affairs  of  the  Church, 
and  the  ministrations  of  persons  and  classes  devoted  to 
the  offices  of  religion,  but,  beyond  this,  that  He  has  little 
to  do  with  the  affairs  of  our  globe.  The  principle  tacitly 
assumed  here  is  of  vicious  tendency.  It  would  divorce 
religion  from  the  daily  life.  It  supposes  a  broad  line  of 
separation  between  the  Church  and  the  world,  not  merely 
in  respect  of  the  spirit  that  should  pervade  the  Church 
(which  is  a  Scriptural  idea),  but  in  respect  of  the  supre- 
macy of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  He  rules  the  Church, 
but  not  the  world  ;  or  if  the  world,  not  with  the  absolute 
sway  He  exercises  over  the  Church.  His  own  word  gives 
no  countenance  to  this  sinister  speculation.  As  long  as 
the  Church  and  the  world  are  intermixed,  his  jurisdiction 
cannot  be  partitioned  off  in  this  way.     Providence  is  a 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  137 

chain  ;  to  hold  one  link  is  to  hold  all.  It  is  a  mirror ;  to 
break  it  in  one  place  is  to  break  it  altogether.  He  who 
rules  the  Church  must  rule  the  thrones,  the  cabinets, 
the  armies,  of  the  world.  He  who  appoints  ministers  to 
their  vocation  must  appoint  statesmen,  physicians,  hus- 
bandmen, mechanics,  and  all  other  persons,  to  theirs. 

And  these  other  classes  receive  their  commission  pre- 
cisely as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel  receives  his.  It  is  not 
that  his  is  a  spiritual  office,  and  therefore  he  is  to  serve 
Christ  in  it;  and  theirs  being  secular  employments,  they 
may  serve  him  or  not  according  to  circumstances.  Their 
work  and  his  stand  upon  a  common  level.  In  either  case, 
the  obligation  is  the  same  to  perform  it  as  by  Christ's 
command  and  for  his  glory.  It  is  as  much  the  duty  of 
a  lawyer  to  carry  into  his  profession  the  motives  and  spirit 
of  true  religion,  as  of  a  pastor  to  exemplify  a  genuine 
piety  in  his  work.  And  so  of  teaching,  of  ploughing,  of 
buying  and  selling,  and  all  other  occupations.  "  What- 
soever ye  do,  do  it  heartily  as  to  the  Lord  and  not  unto 
men."  This  is  addressed  to  Christian  slaves  in  bondag-e 
to  heathen  masters.  If  they  were  not  dispensed  from 
living  'to  the  Lord,'  who  may  claim  exemption] 

And  herein  is  the  true  view  of  society.  Christianity 
is  no  disorganizer.  It  has  often  been  arraigned  at  Caesar's 
bar  on  charges  of  sedition  and  insurrection,  but  with  as 
little  reason  as  its  Divine  Founder.  We  may  not  deny 
that  it  sows  the  seeds  of  revolution.  But  it  is  such  a 
revolution  as  the  breath  of  Spring  heralds  and  hastens 
in  the  frozen,  barren  soil.  Its  gentle  influence  perme- 
ates the  whole  social  fabric,  infuses  into  it  the  spirit  of 
a  new  life,  and  spreads  a  new  aspect  over  its  deformed 

features.     This  is  not  done,  however,  by  taking  society 

10 


138  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

to  pieces.  It  is  not  done  by  summoning  people  indis- 
criminately to  what  is  technically  termed  a  '  religious 
life,' — meaning  thereby  a  life  dedicated  to  spiritual  func- 
tions. This  would  soon  bring  the  world  to  a  pause.  We 
have  all  seen  the  evil  working  of  this  principle  in  coun- 
tries overrun  by  monasticism.  Society  has  suffered  seri- 
ously when  depleted,  even  on  this  limited  scale,  of  its 
efficient  working  material.  And  if  the  principle  were 
carried  out  fully,  albeit  with  a  purer  type  of  religion  than 
prevails  in  those  countries,  it  would  prove  disastrous  to 
the  cause  of  human  progress.  It  is  easy  to  see  what 
would  become  of  a  nation  made  up  of  ministers,  mis- 
sionaries, colporteurs,  and  religious  fraternities.  Such  a 
nation  would  soon  have  to  be  Christianized  over  again 
by  missionaries  from  abroad.  The  arts  and  occupations 
which  engross  men  in  Christian  lands,  are  the  natural 
fruit  of  civilization,  as  they  are,  in  turn,  among  its  chief 
supports.  A  tribe  of  savages  has  but  few  wants.  The 
moment  they  begin  to  emerge  from  barbarism,  their 
wants  increase,  and  they  go  on  increasing,  with  their 
intelligence  and  culture.  Hence  the  indispensable  neces- 
sity for  farmers,  mechanics,  artificers,  and  tradesmen  ;  for 
mills,  factories,  and  ships;  for  schools,  presses,  and  libra- 
ries ;  for  legislatures,  courts,  and  all  the  paraphernalia 
of  government.  These  are  not  the  mere  embellishments 
of  the  social  state,  but  part  and  parcel  of  the  structure. 
Nor  are  they  necessary  to  its  civil  integrity  and  growth 
only,  but  to  its  spiritual  wellbeing  also.  The  Church 
could  not  dispense  with  them.  They  sustain  it,  as  it  sus- 
tains them.  Severed  from  the  Church,  and  spurning  its 
divine  lessons,  they  become  the  implements  of  social  de- 
moralization ;  while  the  Church  severed  from  them  (as 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I39 

may  be  seen  in  mission-churches  on  pagan  ground)  is 
sadly  limited  in  its  means  of  doing  good. 

The  hand  of  God  is  to  be  recognized,  then,  as  well  in 
the  general  organization  of  society,  as  in  the  formation 
of  the  Church.  And  while  He  certainly  requires  that  all 
classes  and  conditions  of  men  shall  do  Him  service.  He 
does  not  expect  them  to  do  this  by  relinquishing  their 
proper  callings.  He  rules  the  world,  not  by  random  im- 
pulses, but  according  to  a  settled  plan.  This  plan  con- 
templates the  gradual  amelioration  of  the  race,  and  the 
ultimate  triumph  of  righteousness  and  peace.  And  this 
aerain  demands  some  such  distribution  of  men  into  classes 
and  professions,  as  that  which  distinguishes  civilization 
from  barbarism.  A  complex  piece  of  mechanism  it  is. 
A  careless  and  even  a  sagacious  observer  may  see  many 
a  cog,  and  wheel,  and  lever,  of  which  he  cannot  divine 
the  use.  But  He  who  framed  and  who  guides  the  mighty 
enginery,  put  in  nothing  superfluous — nothing  which  is 
not  contributing  to  the  grand  result  He  has  in  view. 

This  thought  must  be  kept  in  mind.  It  is  the  best 
sedative  to  discontent.  The  masses  everywhere  are 
doomed  to  a  life  of  toil.  If  a  Providence  be  excluded, 
they,  inevitably  in  the  arrangements  of  society,  will  find 
food  for  murmuring.  '  Why  should  the  few  be  rich, 
and  the  many  poor  1  Why  should  I  be  shut  up  to  this 
forge,  this  loom,  this  last,  all  my  days,  while  my  neigh- 
bor can  spend  his  life  in  reading  and  travelling?  If  I 
must  toil,  why  may  it  not  be  in  some  nobler  sphere,  bet- 
ter suited  to  my  immortal  nature  T  These  are  meanings 
which  well  up  from  the  deeps  of  many  hearts.  We 
cannot  speak  of  them  now  except  in  the  one  aspect 
which  links  them  with  our  subject. 


140  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

It  need  not  be  denied,  that  society  is  sadly  disorganized 
by  the  presence  of  sin.  No  one  pretends  that  all  its 
arrangements  are  good,  absolutely  considered ;  much  less 
that  the  entire  working  of  the  mechanism  meets  God's 
approval.  But  it  is,  nevertheless,  his  institution.  Its 
every  provision  enters  into  his  plan.  He  assigns  to  men 
their  several  avocations.  He  appoints  some  to  rule,  and 
some  to  serve ;  one  to  live  by  his  wits,  and  another  to 
live  by  his  hands;  one  to  drive  oxen,  and  another  to 
lead  an  army ;  and  so  through  the  whole  range  of  human 
pursuits.  Taking  the  world  as  it  is,  this  is  in  his  view 
the  best  method  of  counteracting  the  effects  of  the  fall, 
and  training  the  race  for  their  high  destiny.  The  vital 
thought  is,  that  He  orders  these  various  allotments.  "  To 
every  man  his  work."  Society  cannot  answer  the  end 
for  which  He  designs  it,  without  the  co-operation  of  all 
these  forces,  great  and  small,  lowly  and  lofty.  From  the 
king  on  his  throne  to  the  peasant  in  his  hut,  from  the 
sage  in  his  library  to  the  untutored  factory-boy,  He 
needs  them  all.  He  is  using  them  to  work  out  his  plan. 
Each  individual  has  his  own  mission.  No  one  can  fulfil 
it  for  him.  And  it  should  reconcile  him  to  his  task,  to 
feel  that  it  has  been  laid  upon  him  by  One  who  cannot 
err,  and  whose  goodness  is  commensurate  with  his  wis- 
dom. This  reflection  will  impart  dignity  to  the  humblest 
employment,  and  smooth  the  roughest  path.  If  we  might 
suppose  a  cohort  of  angels  to  come  down  to  live  on  the 
earth,  it  is  certain  that  one  consideration  only  would 
enter  into  their  choice  of  occupations.  '  What  is  the  will 
of  God "?  What  wilt  Thou  have  me  to  do  ?'  This  would 
be  the  sole  inquiry.  And,  this  resolved,  all  stations 
would  be  alike  to  them.     From  time  to  time  they  have 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \^\ 

visited  our  world.  One  of  them  brings  a  message  to 
Abraham.  Another  comes  on  an  errand  of  mercy  to  his 
outcast  bond-woman  in  the  wilderness.  A  third  smites 
Jerusalem  with  the  plague.  A  fourth  announced  to 
Mary  the  coming  Saviour.  A  fifth  troubled,  annually, 
the  water  of  Bethesda.  A  sixth  releases  Peter  from  pri- 
son. Can  you  doubt  that  if  the  whole  angelic  throng 
had  been  summoned  before  the  throne,  and  these  several 
offices  laid  before  them,  and  the  question  been  asked, 
Who  will  go  \  they  would  have  responded  with  one  voice, 
'Send  YcveV  And  if  the  further  question  had  been  put 
to  them,  one  by  one,  '  On  which  of  these  errands  wilt 
thou  go  ]'  the  instant  and  unvarying  answer  would  have 
been,  'Not  as  I  will,  but  as  Thou  wilt!'  And  so,  the 
more  we  approximate  to  these  holy  beings  in  character, 
the  less  will  it  concern  us  where  we  are  to  go  or  what 
we  are  to  do.  It  will  be  enough  to  know  that  we  are  in 
the  sphere  to  which  our  Master  has  appointed  us,  and 
doing  the  work  He  would  have  us  do. 

While  this  is  the  actual  system  under  which  we  are 
living,  it  is  also  the  best  system  for  us  and  for  the  world. 
It  is  no  less  for  our  present  comfort  than  our  future  well- 
being,  that  our  times  should  be  in  God's  hand.  For  his 
character  is  adorned  with  every  excellence  carried  up  to 
the  highest  pitch  of  perfection.  All  the  virtues  meet  in 
Him  which  can  possibly  be  combined  in  the  person  of  a 
Ruler.  His  eye  alone  can  look  over  the  whole  field,  and 
see  what  each  part  may  require,  and  it  is  the  only  one 
which  can  explore  the  recesses  of  every  heart,  and  learn 
its  every  care,  and  danger,  and  want.  His  is  the  only  arm 
strong  enough  to  succor  his  people  when  in  trouble,  and 
defend   them   against   their  enemies  seen  and  unseen. 


1^-2  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

No  heart  but  his  is  large  enough  and  compassionate 
enough  to  receive  all  their  complaints  and  sympathize  in 
all  their  sorrows.  This  may  well  reconcile  them  to  those 
social  inequalities  of  which  we  have  been  speaking,  and 
which  are  so  often  a  source  of  repining.  He  is  conduct- 
ing the  vast  and  complicated  affairs  of  his  government, 
as  an  undivided  and  accordant  whole.  To  our  eyes  it 
may  liave  as  little  unity,  as  the  driving  masses  of  clouds 
with  which  a  hurricane  overspreads  the  heavens.  But 
to  Him  who  sits  upon  his  throne  in  the  calm  serenity  of 
the  upper  skies,  all  is  lucid  and  harmonious ;  and  every 
creature,  and  every  event,  is  helping  on  the  final  con- 
summation. In  such  a  scheme,  it  is  unavoidable  that 
some  should  have  a  better  lot  than  others :  that  many 
should  toil  all  their  days  at  the  rough  work  of  life ;  and 
many  make  their  way  to  the  heavenly  city  slowly  and 
painfully  along  the  rugged  paths  of  misfortune  and  pov- 
erty. Their  agency  can  no  more  be  dispensed  with,  than 
that  of  the  more  favored  ones  (as  we  style  them)  who 
are  born  to  wealth  and  power.  Their  comfort  is,  that 
they  are  all  serving  a  common  Master  who  assigns  '  to 
every  man  his  work ;'  that  this  arrangement  is  deemed 
by  Him  to  be  essential  to  the  ultimate  and  highest  good 
of  all  concerned ;  and  that  He  will  amply  compensate 
these  inequalities  in  the  life  to  come. 

From  the  principle  we  have  been  illustrating,  that 
Christ  assigns  '  to  every  man  his  work,'  it  follows  that 
we  should  all.  endeavor  to  find  out  what  work  He  has 
appointed  to  us.  In  numerous  instances  this  question 
will  be  of  easy  solution,  for  there  seems,  in  fact,  little 
room  for  choice.  Circumstances  over  which  we  have  no 
control  decide  the  point  for  us ;  and  we  take  a  certain 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I43 

path  simply  because  we  can  take  no  other.  In  these 
cases  we  may  feel  tolerably  sure  we  are  following  the 
design  of  our  'Great  Taskmaster;'  since  it  is  through 
his  providence,  as  well  as  by  his  word,  that  He  is  accus- 
tomed to  make  his  will  known. 

In  another  class  of  examples  He  decides  the  question 
by  the  bias  He  impresses  upon  the  mind,  and  the  endow- 
ments He  confers.  The  records  of  every  profession  con- 
tain the  names  of  men  who  must  have  done  the  greatest 
violence  to  nature  to  be  anything  but  what  they  were. 
That  Galen  must  be  a  physician,  that  Raphael  must  be 
a  painter,  and  Beethoven  a  musician,  and  Can  ova  a  sculp- 
tor, and  Milton  a  poet,  and  Howard  a  philanthropist,  and 
Marshall  a  jurist,  and  Addison  Alexander  a  linguist,  was 
settled  from  the  dawn  of  their  intellectual  powers.  We 
may  say,  in  general,  the  possession  of  any  endowment  is 
proof  that  it  is  to  be  cultivated ;  and  where,  as  in  the 
instances  just  cited,  it  is  paramount  and  controlling,  it 
may,  without  much  hazard,  be  held  as  indicating  the 
'  work '  its  possessor  is  to  do.  In  the  absence  of  any 
strong  constitutional  predilection,  and  of  circumstances 
which  hedge  up  every  road  but  one,  a  true  disciple  will 
not  ordinarily  be  left  long  without  some  intimation  as  to 
the  sphere  in  which  he  can  best  serve  his  Lord.  '  Work ' 
of  some  sort  there  is  for  him  and  for  all.  "  To  every 
man  his  work."  As  already  observed,  this  allows  for  no 
exceptions.  To  be  born  into  this  world  is  to  have  a  work 
to  do  for  Him  who  placed  us  here.  He  sanctified  this 
law  by  his  own  blessed  example.  The  simple  glimpse 
we  have  of  his  early  years  shows  that  his  youth  was 
given  to  study  and  reflection.  The  language  of  his  towns- 
men, 'Is  not  this  the  carpenter  T  warrants  the  belief  that 


144  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

He  may  afterward  have  assisted  Joseph  at  his  trade. 
And  from  his  baptism  to  his  death  He  'wrought  with 
hibor  and  travail,  night  and  day,'  as  no  child  of  Adam 
ever  did  before  or  since.  '  It  is  enough  that  the  disciple 
be  as  his  Master,  and  the  servant  as  his  Lord.'  To  say, 
>vhen  summoned  to  a  life  of  work,  "  I  pray  thee  have  me 
excused,"  is  all  one  with  asking  to  be  excused  from  fol- 
lowing Christ. 

This  determines  nothing  as  to  the  Icind  of  work  ap- 
pointed us.  It  may  be  any  one  of  a  hundred  forms  of 
manual  industry,  or  any  one  of  a  thousand  varieties  of 
intellectual  occupation ;  or  any  one  of  a  still  larger  num- 
ber of  passive  labors, — the  mission  of  sorrow  and  suffer- 
ing. The  idea  is  the  same.  Life  is  to  be  a  'work;'  not 
a  dream,  not  a  pastime,  not  a  scene  of  capricious  and 
fitful  activity,  not  a  listless,  aimless  routine  of  eating 
and  drinking,  and  sleeping  and  w^aking,  but  a  '  work.' 
This  does  not  mean  'work'  without  respite.  We  have 
a  better  Master  than  that.  The  service  He  lays  upon 
his  disciples  is  not  the  exhausting  drudgery  of  the  slave, 
but  the  free,  loving  obedience  of  a  child.  It  is  their 
right  to  regale  themselves  with  innocent  and  timely  diver- 
sions. Do  you  suppose  Christianity  frowns  upon  all 
mirth  1  That  it  makes  wit  a  sin,  and  recreation  an  im- 
piety \  If  so,  why  has  God  made  us  thus  %  Has  He 
created  these  faculties  and  susceptibilities  only  that  they 
may  be  tantalized  and  thwarted  ?  Or  has  He  formed 
them  to  be  cidtivated  and  exercised  ;  and  so  to  lend  their 
aid  in  lightening  the  burdens  of  life  and  fighting  its 
battles  \  But  they  must  be  kept  in  their  place.  They 
are  not  to  be  made  the  business  of  life,  but  only  its  re- 
fection ;  not  the  end  of  life,  but  springs  to  recruit  us  on 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I45 

our  way  thither.  This  brings  them  legitimately  within 
the  scope  of  our  commission.  It  incorporates  them  with 
the  Christian's  work.  It  impresses  the  King's  image  and 
superscription  as  well  upon  his  mirthful  interludes  as 
upon  his  hours  of  patient  labor  and  anxious  study,  while, 
by  invigorating  his  powers,  it  enables  him  to  do  more 
work  for  his  Master,  and  to  do  it  better  than  he  possibly 
could  without  this  relaxation. 

It  is  very  obvious  to  remark  that  there  are  certain 
qualifications  prerequisite  if  we  would  do  our  work  prop- 
erly, irrespective  of  the  calling  we  may  choose.  So  es- 
sential is  this  that  our  Saviour  includes  it  in  the  work 
itself:  "  This  is  the  work  of  God  (the  work  which  He 
enjoins),  that  ye  believe  in  him  whom  he  hath  sent." 
It  is  the  first  step  towards  working  for  Him  in  what  we 
call  the  business  of  life.  No  man  can  serve  his  Lord 
acceptably  in  any  vocation  unless  he  begins  here.  And 
this  must  be  understood  as  implied  when  we  say  that 
a  man's  profession  is  often  determined  by  his  endow- 
ments. A  genius  for  painting,  or  for  mechanics,  may 
justify  a  man  in  concluding  that  Christ  has  appointed 
him  his  work  in  one  of  these  departments.  And  he  may 
devote  himself  to  it,  and  achieve  great  success.  But  he 
will  after  all  fail  of  doing  his  work  as  it  sliould  have 
been  done  unless  he  first  gives  himself  to  the  Lord.  Nor 
this  alone.  The  obligation  to  cultivate  personal  religion 
must  be  recognized  as  paramount  through  life.  In  just 
so  far  as  this  ceases  to  be  the  prime  aim  and  interest  of 
the  soul,  must  we  come  short  in  the  work  prescribed 
to  us. 

A  living  faith  in  Christ  being  presupposed,  our  work 
is  to  be  accepted  as  of  his  appointment^  and  to  be  done 


146  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

for  and  in  Him.  Here  comes  the  difficulty.  How  can 
we  go  about  our  daily  toil  in  a  religious  way"?  How  can 
we  blend  our  Christianity  with  all  our  avocations'?  This, 
clearly,  is  what  the  text  implies,  and  what  a  Christian 
profession  involves. 

It  will  manifestly  be  of  great  importance  to  us,  to 
cherish  the  feeling  that  it  is  GhrisVs  work  we  arc  doing. 
No  matter  what  the  sphere,  our  commission  is  from  Him. 
Notice  the  opening  of  many  of  the  Apostolic  epistles: — 
"Paul,  a  servant  of  Jesus  Christ,"  "a  servant  of  God;" 
"  Simon  Peter,  a  servant  and  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ ;" 
"James,  a  servant  of  God  and  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;" 
"  Jude,  the  servant  of  Jesus  Christ."  This  pertains  to 
every  Christian:  he  is  'a  servant  of  Jesus  Christ.'  His 
paramount  responsibility  is  to  Him.  He  is  as  much 
bound  to  obey  Him,  as  if  he  were  his  only  servant.  It  is 
of  no  moment  whether  other  masters  or  employers  come 
in  between  himself  and  Christ.  His  ultimate  allegiance 
is  still  the  same.  And  it  will  not  do  for  him  to  lose  sight 
of  it. 

We  have  already  stated  this  principle  and  produced 
the  authority  upon  which  it  rests.  But  we  may  reiterate 
the  sentiment,-  that  it  covers  the  entire  field  of  human 
activity.  It  extends  as  well  to  the  youth  who  is  set  to 
watch  a  herd  of  cattle,  to  the  sailor  in  mid-ocean,  to  the 
sorrowful  woman  turning  her  spinning-wheel  in  her 
lonely  attic,  to  the  sempstress  plying  her  weary,  incessant 
needle,  as  to  the  Pastor  of  a  congregation,  or  a  INIission- 
ary  among  the  heathen.  They  have  their  employers: 
but  it  is  not  for  them  alone  they  are  working.  Nor  is  it 
merely  to  earn  wages,  and  make  a  livelihood.  Above 
all  and  pervading   all  motives  of   this  sort,  there  is  a 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I47 

purer  and  nobler  element  which,  fully  admitted,  will 
impart  a  hallowed  savor  to  their  distasteful  toil.  It  is 
Christ  who  has  given  them  this  work  to  do.  He  would 
not  have  done  it,  if  it  had  not  been  for  their  good.  It 
may  blight  some  of  their  early  aspirations.  It  may  con- 
sign them  to  obscurity.  It  may  expose  them  to  cruel 
slights  at  the  hands  of  those  from  whom  they  earn  their 
daily  bread.  But  what  of  all  this,  if  Christ  be  satisfied: 
if  He  looks  upon  every  hour  given  to  the  loom,  and  the 
anvil,  and  the  distaff,  and  the  windlass,  as  devoted  to 
Him ;  and  upon  every  taunt,  and  indignity,  and  wrong, 
as  endured  for  Himl  With  this  thought,  they  can  do 
all,  and  bear  all. 

A  kindred  reflection  must  be  clasped  with  it : — the  sense 
of  Chrisfs  presence.  It  is  his  work  we  are  doing,  and 
He  is  with  us  while  we  are  doing  it.  We  are  all  familiar 
with  the  power  of  such  a  conviction.  Every  Christian 
parent  impresses  it  upon  the  minds  of  his  children,  as 
one  of  the  daily  lessons  of  the  nursery  and  the  family — 
'  Remember  that  wherever  you  go,  and  whatever  you 
do,  God's  eye  is  upon  you.'  There  is  not  one  of  these 
densely  populated  mills  and  factories,  where  the  principle 
is  not  constantly  illustrated.  Every  artisan,  every  laborer, 
has  felt  the  influence  of  his  employer's  presence,  as  he 
has  gone  about  from  room  to  room,  stopping  for  a  moment 
now  at  this  one's  and  now  at  that  one's  elbow.  Every 
scholar  knows  how  he  feels  when  his  teacher  comes  down 
amidst  the  desks  and  benches,  and,  drawing  near  to  each 
pupil  in  turn,  scrutinizes  his  work  and  pronounces  the 
due  commendation  or  censure. 

Well — the  world  is  but  an  immense  school ;  and  the 
Great  Teacher  is  always  present,  by  a  real  ubiquity,  with 


148  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

every  pupil  and  at  every  moment.  The  world,  again,  is 
but  a  huge  workshop.  And  the  great  Mechanician,  the 
Author  of  all  science,  of  all  art,  and  of  all  skill,  is  per- 
petually present, — not  going  about  from  one  department 
to  another,  and  pausing  for  a  moment  with  each  crafts- 
man ;  but  mailing  his  abode  with  him,  never  withdraw- 
ing, standing  all  the  while  by  every  operative — master, 
and  journeyman,  and  apprentice,  alike — observing  his 
every  motion,  hearing  his  every  word,  catching  his 
every  change  of  countenance,  and  even  reading  every 
thought  of  his  heart. 

Now  what  we  need  is  to  realize  this — to  feel  that  the 
Master  is  thus  with  us,  noticing  our  every  act,  and  utter- 
ance, and  feeling ;  and  seeing  how  we  do  the  work  He 
has  put  into  our  hands.  It  may  aid  us  in  this  confessedly 
difficult  attainment,  to  consider  before  we  begin  the  day's 
duties  that  we  are  his  servants,  and  live  only  to  work  for 
Him  ;  and  to  invoke  his  special  help  in  our  vocation.  It 
will  be  useful  to  cherish  the  thought  amidst  the  cares  and 
conflicts  of  the  day,  '  I  am  not  my  own,  but  bought  with 
a  price.'  It  will  not  be  in  vain  to  emulate  the  example 
of  that  great  Captain  and  Ruler,  Nehemiah,  and  send 
up,  even  in  the  busiest  hours,  ejaculatory  cries  for  help 
to  our  ever-watchful  and  gracious  Lord.  And  this  his 
people  may  do  with  the  more  confidence,  because  it  is 
his  work  they  are  doing,  and  He  will  deny  them  no  suc- 
cors which  they  may  need  in  doing  it  properly. 

In  speaking  of  this  union  of  business  and  devotion,  it 
has  been  well  said, — "  Do  as  little  children  do,  who  with 
one  hand  hold  fast  by  their  father,  and  with  the  other 
gather  hips  and  haws,  or  blackberries,  along  the  hedges ; 
so  you,  gathering  and  managing  with  one  hand  the  things 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I49 

of  this  world,  must  with  the  other  always  hold  fast  the 
hand  of  your  Heavenly  Father,  turning  yourself  towards 
Him  from  time  to  time,  to  see  if  your  actions  or  occupa- 
tions be  pleasing  to  Him.  But  above  all  things  take 
heed,  that  you  never  let  go  his  protecting  hand,  thinking 
to  gather  more ;  for  should  He  forsake  you,  you  will  not 
be  able  to  go  a  step  without  falling  to  the  ground."* 

This  last  idea  is  vital.  AVe  must  do  our  work,  not  only 
as  by  Christ's  appointment,  and  with  a  sense  of  his  pre- 
sence, but,  consciously,  in  his  strength.  '  Without  me, 
ye  can  do  nothing.'  If  this  was  true  of  the  apostles,  it 
must  be  true  of  all  disciples.  The  strongest  of  them  are 
powerless  in  this  work  and  warfare,  except  as  He  sustains 
them.  But  through  Christ  strengthening  them,  the  very 
feeblest  '  can  do  all  things.'  And  strengthen  them  He 
will,  if  they  habitually  look  to  Him  for  aid. 

And  now,  imperfect  as  has  been  this  exposition  of  the 
subject,  I  think  you  will  all  accept  this  Scripture  as  a 
most  appropriate  text  for  the  opening  year, — "  To  every 
man  his  work."  Representing,  as  you  do,  numerous 
professions,  and  endowed  with  a  large  diversity  of  gifts, 
it  deeply  concerns  you  to  remember  that  "  One  is  your 
Master,  even  Christ,"  and  that  He  has  given  every  one  a 
work  to  do  for  Him.  Could  we  take  this  conviction  with 
us  into  our  several  spheres  of  labor,  and  cherish  it  as  a 
principle  to  live  by  for  the  coming  twelve-month  (or  for 
as  much  of  it  as  we  may  be  spared  to  see),  it  could  not 
fail  to  redound  greatly  to  our  comfort  and  advantage. 

One  effect  of  it,  which  I  have  already  glanced  at, 
would  be,  to  spread  a  brighter  aspect  over  the  entire 
business  of  life.    For,  assuredly,  it  would  put  a  new  phase 

*  Quoted  by  Goulburn. 


150  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

upon  your  counting-rooms,  and  your  work-shops,  and  your 
offices,  to  feel  that  they  are  simply  apartments  provided 
by  the  Universal  Proprietor  where  He  is  in  the  habit 
of  coming  every  day  to  see  you,  and  to  help  you  in  fur- 
thering his  plans.  It  would  infuse  new  life  into  your 
studies,  to  think  that  He  is  your  Teacher.  It  would 
rest  your  weary  arm,  to  know  that  his  eye  is  watching 
over  you  at  your  work.  It  would  relieve  the  solitude  of 
your  dim-lighted  chamber  to  feel  that  your  best  Friend 
is  sitting  by  you,  an  invisible  but  willing  guest.  We 
smile  at  the  illusions  of  those  amiable  religionists,  who 
imagine  their  deceased  friends  to  be  still  living  with 
them,  and  lay  the  accustomed  cover  for  them  at  every 
meal,  and  set  them  a  chair  at  every  gathering  of  the 
family  circle.  But  it  is  no  phantasy  when  we  claim  all 
this,  and  more  than  this,  for  our  Friend  of  friends. 
We  know  of  a  truth  that  He  is  wherever  his  people 
are — whether  in  palaces  or  cottages,  in  the  halls  of  legis- 
lation or  the  halls  of  science,  in  the  ship  tossed  upon  the 
billows  or  the  fragile  tent  quivering  in  the  midnight  gale. 
We  are  as  certain  of  his  presence  as  we  are  of  our  own 
being.  And  if  we  can  but  clothe  this  speculative  con- 
viction with  the  warmth  and  energy  of  a  vital  faith,  and 
carry  it  with  us  into  every  walk  and  every  scene  of  life ; 
if  we  can  enthrone  Christ  in  our  homes,  our  business, 
our  literature,  our  politics,  our  toils,  our  sorrows,  and  our 
pleasures,  and  realize  that  whatever  occupation,  or  what- 
ever trial,  or  whatever  pastime,  demand  our  care,  it  is 
part  of  the  work  He  has  laid  upon  us,  no  tongue  may 
attempt  to  describe  the  happiness  it  would  bring  with  it. 
This  view  of  life  impresses  a  certain  dignity  and  worth 
upon  every  station  and  every  employment,  even  the  low- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \^\ 

est.  Our  merciful  Father  would  not  leave  servants,  not 
even  bondsmen,  to  suppose  that  they  could  do  nothhig  for 
their  Lord ;  and  so  they  are  taught  that  they  are  as  much 
included  in  the  rule — "  to  every  man  his  work" — as  the 
princes  and  philosophers  of  the  world.  Inspired  by  this 
sentiment,  their  hard  service  becomes  instinct  with  the 
life  that  burns  and  glows  in  the  songs  of  the  seraphim. 
And  so  of  every  service  that  is  rendered,  by  whatsoever 
disciple,  in  the  spirit  of  this  Scripture.  We  have  some 
reason  to  believe  that  those  of  the  twelve  who  had  been 
fishermen  did  not  wholly  relinquish  their  vocation  on 
the  ascension  of  their  Lord.  We  know  that  St.  Paul 
continued  to  work  at  his  trade  as  a  tent-maker,  after  he 
had  entered  upon  his  apostolic  mission.  Can  we  doubt 
that  their  tent-making  and  fishing,  as  pertaining  to  the 
'  work'  their  Master  had  given  them,  were  just  as  accept- 
able to  Him  as  their  miracles  and  their  preaching'? 

And  starting  here,  we  may  go  up  through  all  the  gra- 
dations of  society  till  we  reach  the  loftiest  spheres  of 
statesmanship  and  of  scientific  research,  and  say  that  as 
they  are  '  all  under  law  to  Christ,'  so,  when  pervaded  by 
the  spirit  of  our  text,  they  will  all  yield  Him  a  revenue 
of  praise. 

What  we  need  is  to  be  imbued  with  this  spirit.  We 
must  feel  that  our  work  as  it  is  from  him,  so  it  is  to  be 
for  him  and  in  him.  Not  only  our  manufacturing  and 
our  trafficking,  but  the  quiet  routine  of  household  cares, 
our  reading,  our  visiting,  our  travelling,  our  mourning, 
our  suffering,  the  duties  we  owe  to  our  government  and 
our  country,  no  less  than  those  we  owe  to  the  Church, 
all  must  be  put  under  the  guardianship  of  this  divine 
principle,  and  linked  with  the  sacred  name  of  Christ. 


152  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

And  if  tlicsc  interests  are  to  be  cared  for  with  a  jealous 
eye,  as  part  of  the  work  He  has  assigned  to  us,  much 
more  must  we  do  what  we  can,  and  all  we  can,  to  build 
up  his  kingdom  and  save  the  perishing.  In  offering  you 
an  inspired  motto  for  the  year,  I  have  deemed  it  proper 
to  unfold  it  in  its  general  aspect,  and  to  point  out  its  just 
adaptation  to  human  life  in  its  every  form  and  circum- 
stance. As  the  greater  includes  the  less,  the  obligation 
to  promote,  in  every  suitable  way,  the  conversion  of  sin- 
ners and  the  edification  of  believers,  —  to  promote  the 
cause  of  Christ  at  home  and  abroad, — has  been  tacitly 
recognized  in  the  whole  argument.  But  it  may  be  allowed 
me,  in  a  closing  word,  to  say,  that  while  He  assigns  this 
Avork  to  one  man,  and  to  another  that,  here  is  a  work 
which  He  commits  to  all.  It  is  the  work  which  brought 
Him  down  to  our  world,  which  reconciled  him  to  the 
garden  and  the  cross,  and  which  He  is  now  wielding  the 
resources  of  the  universe  to  carry  forward  to  its  glorious 
result.  He  allows  us  the  priceless  privilege  of  co-operat- 
ing with  Him.  He  stoops  to  use  our  poor  services  in 
rescuing  our  fellow-sinners,  and  ministering  the  ineffable 
blessings  of  his  truth  and  grace  to  his  suffering  children. 
We  may  not  decline  the  proffered  honor.  Let  us  grate- 
fully accept  it.  Let  us  dedicate  this  year  to  offices  of 
Christian  love  and  pity,  to  service  and  sacrifice  for  the 
good  of  souls  in  the  name  of  a  risen  Saviour.  'Be  in- 
stant in  season,  out  of  season.'  'Whatsoever  thy  hand 
findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might.'  'Let  us  not  be 
weary  in  well-doing,  for  in  due  season  we  shall  reap  if 
we  faint  not.'  '  In  the  morning  sow  thy  seed,  and  in  the 
evening  withhold  not  thine  hand ;  for  thou  knowest  not 
whether  shall  prosper,  either  this  or  that,  or  whether 
they  shall  both  be  alike  good.' 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I53 

"  Sow  ye  beside  all  waters, 

Where  the  dew  of  heaven  may  fall ; 
Ye  shall  reap  if  ye  be  not  weary, 

For  the  Spirit  breathes  o'er  all. 
Sow,  though  the  thorns  may  wound  thee: 

One  wore  the  thorns  for  thee  ; 
And  though  the  cold  world  scorn  thee, 

Patient  and  hopeful  be. 
Sow  ye  beside  all  waters. 

With  a  blessing  and  a  prayer  ; 
Name  Him  whose  hand  upholds  us, 

And  sow  thou  everywhere. 

"  Sow,  though  the  rock  repel  thee, 

In  its  cold  and  sterile  pride  ; 
Some  cleft  there  may  be  riven. 

Where  the  little  seed  may  hide. 
Fear  not,  for  some  will  flourish. 

And  though  the  tares  abound. 
Like  the  willows  by  the  waters 

Will  the  scattered  grain  be  found. 
Work  while  the  daylight  lasteth, 

p]re  the  sliades  of  night  come  on  ; 
Ere  the  Lord  of  the  vineyard  cometh. 

And  the  laborer's  work  is  done. 

"  Work  in  the  wild  waste  places. 

Though  none  thy  love  may  own  ; 
God  guides  the  down  of  the  thistle. 

The  wandering  wind  hath  sown. 
Will  Jesus  chide  thy  weakness, 

Or  call  thy  labor  vain  ? 
The  word  that  for  Him  thou  bearest 

Shall  return  to  Him  again. 
On  !  with  thine  heart  in  heaven, 

Thy  strength  in  thy  Master's  might, 
Till  the  wild  waste  places  blossom 

In  the  warmth  of  a  Saviour's  ligrht. . 


11 


154  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

"  "Watch  not  the  clouds  above  thee, 

Let  the  whirlwind  round  thee  sweep  ; 
God  may  the  seed-time  give  thee, 

But  another's  hand  may  reap. 
Have  faith,  though  ne'er  beholding 

The  seed  burst  from  its  tomb  : — 
Thou  know'st  not  which  may  perish. 

Or  what  be  spared  to  bloom. 
Room  on  the  narrowest  ridges 

The  ripened  grain  will  tind. 
That  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  coming, 

In  the  harvest  sheaves  may  bind." 


1866. 


IX. 


'^THIS  IS  NOT  YOUR  REST." 

MICAH  II.  10. 


Hayhstg  in  view  the  various  passages  of  Scripture 
which  have  ah'eady  been  offered  to  you  as  "  Year-texts," 
I  find  nothing  more  appropriate  for  the  present  anni- 
versary than  the  statement,  "  This  is  not  your  rest." 
It  is  so  concise  as  to  be  easily  remembered,  so  simple  as 
to  carry  with  it  its  own  exposition,  and  so  practical  as 
to  admit  of  a  ready  application  to  all  the  current  expe- 
riences of  life. 

As  it  stands  in  the  book  of  the  prophet,  it  is  part  of  an 
admonition  or  command  to  the  chosen  race.  They  had 
fallen  from  their  high  estate.  Their  land  was  filled  with 
iniquity.  Yet  they  fondly  imagined  they  would  be  allowed 
to  retain  possession  of  it.  Palestine  had  been  given  them 
in  solemn  covenant  as  a  perpetual  inheritance,  and  could 
not  be  wrested  from  them.  Their  off'ended  God  dispels 
this  illusion.  He  gives  them  to  understand  that  the 
country  had  been  made  over  to  them  only  upon  condition 
of  their  fidelity  to  Him.  This  condition  they  had  vio- 
lated, and  thereby  forfeited  the  grant.  "Arise, ye,  and 
depart;  for  this  is  not  your  rest."     They  must  relinquish 

( 1^5  ) 


156  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

their  land ; — they  would,  in  fact,  be  driven  from  it,  and 
others  would  enter  in  and  dwell  there. 

We  are  not  now  concerned  with  these  transactions. 
But  we  are  deeply  interested  in  the  language  addressed 
to  that  people, — "  this  is  not  your  rest."  It  has  a  lesson 
for  us  all — a  lesson  which  we  shall  be  likely  to  need  on 
every  day  of  this  opening  year. 

Besides  what  the  words  express,  there  are  two  things 
they  imply.  First,  that  we  shall  require  a  rest ;  and 
secondly,  that  there  is  somewhere  a  rest  for  us.  On  each 
of  these  points  the  Scriptures  are,  elsewhere,  very  expli- 
cit. Nor  could  the  prophet  have  meant  less  when  he 
said  (if  we  be  warranted  at  all  in  thus  generalizing  the 
sentiment)  "  this  is  not  your  rest."  Why  speak  to  us 
of  a  'rest'  unless  we  require  one]  And  if  ''this'  be  not 
the  rest  provided  for  us,  where  is  it  1  The  latter  of  these 
topics  may  be  noticed  by  and  by :  the  former  will  inter- 
weave itself  with  the  whole  discussion  of  the  subject. 
For  the  present,  let  us  consider  how  we  may  take  this 
text  as  our  motto  and  carry  it,  to  some  good  purpose, 
into  the  scenes  and  avocations  of  the  opening  year.  We 
shall  find,  I  think,  that  it  is  equally  good  for  joy  and  for 
sorrow,  for  adversity  and  for  prosperity. 

AVe  may  begin  with  the  brighter  side  of  life.  It  may 
not  at  first  strike  you  so,  but  the  prosperous,  equally  with 
the  afiiicted,  need  the  lesson,  "  this  is  not  your  rest." 
Look  around,  and  see  if  it  be  not  so.  Go  into  these 
homes  of  health  and  plenty,  these  mills  and  warehouses 
into  which  wealth  pours  its  abundance.  What  is  the 
reigning  spirit  there"?  Allowing  for  exceptions,  is  it  not, 
'  I  shall  die  in  my  rest ;  and  I  shall  multiply  my  days  as 
the  sand'  ]     '  Soul,  thou  hast  much  goods  laid  up  for 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I57 

many  years ;  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry.'  The  tendency 
is  always  in  this  direction.  Where  the  result  is  other- 
wise, it  is  because  the  tide  has  been  turned  back  by  a 
stronger  counter -current  from  without.  The  aspect  of 
society  shows  how  faint  the  power  of  resistance  is  to  this 
pernicious  influence.  That  it  should  sweep  away  the 
crowds  who  avowedly  live  for  this  world,  is  a  thing  of 
course.  They  yield  to  it  of  choice.  It  is  the  only  hap- 
piness they  know,  and  they  have  no  sense  of  accounta- 
bility which  interferes  with  it.  But  to  estimate  the  force 
of  this  noxious  agency  we  must  come  into  the  Church. 
See  how  often  it  bears  down  the  props  and  safeguards  of 
a  Christian  profession.  Where  will  you  go,  that  you  do 
not  find  a  multitude  of  people  who  sit  down  at  the  Lord's 
Table  on  the  Sabbath,  running  into  every  species  of 
diversion,  not  excluding  the  most  extravagant,  during 
the  week  ?  Where  will  you  go,  that  you  do  not  meet 
individuals,  once  active  in  the  church,  whose  piety  pros- 
perity has  blighted  as  a  frost  withers  a  bed  of  flowers'? 

Does  this  prove  that  the  acquisition  of  wealth  is  an 
essential  evil  \  or  that  it  is  wrong  to  desire  prosperity  % 
By  no  means :  within  due  limitations  and  in  the  use  of 
legitimate  means,  there  can  be  no  sin  in  the  case.  But 
it  does  prove  that  it  is  a  perilous  path  to  walk  in  ;  an 
atmosphere  which  one  must  not  breathe  without  using 
every  precaution  against  the  subtle  principle  that  infects 
it.  And  therefore  it  is  that  this  Scripture  is  tendered 
you  as  some  slight  protection  against  the  dangers  of  the 
way.  It  need  not  and  should  not  be  an  ungracious  me- 
mento— a  spectre  to  frighten  you — a  pall  thrown  over 
your  innocent  festivities.  Why  should  it  impair  the  en- 
joyment of  life,  to  be  reminded  of  our  actual  condition 


158  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

here ;  to  keep  in  view  the  important  truth  (which  no 
indifference  of  ours  can  make  otlier  than  a  truth)  that 
we  are  here  only  as  sojourners  in  a  strange  land'?  If  we 
cannot  hear  this  lesson,  there  must  be  something  seri- 
ously wrong  in  our  characters  or  employments.  And  all 
the  more  do  we  need  it  because  it  is  unwelcome.  This 
is  one  of  the  cases  where  antipathy  to  the  remedy  proves 
the  malignity  of  the  disease. 

Nor  let  it  be  supposed  that  the  admonition  here  set 
forth  is  needed  only  by  those  who  are  thoroughly  im- 
mersed in  plans  of  sudden  wealth,  or  in  gay  amusements. 
Your  tastes  may  run  in  other  channels ;  they  may  be 
wiser  and  nobler.  You  find  your  happiness  among  your 
books  and  your  paintings.  Surrounded  by  a  few  choice 
friends,  you  readily  surrender  to  others  the  frivolities  of 
society,  the  strifes  of  politics,  and  the  contests  and  re- 
wards which  divide  the  great  body  even  of  able  and  cul- 
tivated men.  This  is  well  as  far  as  it  goes.  But,  even 
in  this  tranquil  and  elevated  sphere  you  may  forget  the 
true  ends  of  life.  It  may  be  very  needful  that  as  you 
sit  in  your  well-stocked  library,  or  loiter  through  your 
choice  gallery,  you  should  recall  now  and  then  the  moni- 
tory sentence,  "this  is  not  your  rest."  Peradventure,  the^ 
occasion  for  this  may  be  quite  as  urgent  with  you  as  with 
any  of  the  eager  crowd  who  jostle  each  other  along  the 
thoroughfares  of  traffic.  For  these  quiet  tastes  are  emi- 
nently fascinating.  Few  persons  indulge  them  without 
becoming  enthusiasts.  And  an  obvious  reason  for  this 
is,  that  the  pleasure  they  yield  is  more  satisfying  than 
that  supplied  by  most  other  pursuits.  It  comes  nearer 
to  filling  the  capacities  of  the  soul, — not  that  it  does  fill 
them.     When  was  a  scholar,  a  painter,  a  sculptor,  or 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I59 

a  musician,  perfectly  satisfied  %  But,  as  among  the  cus- 
tomary avocations  of  men,  the  inherent  craving  of  the 
mind  after  some  real  good  is  at  least  better  met  in  these 
directions  than  in  others.  And  thus  they  usually  become 
supreme  and  controlling.  Unless  carefully  watched,  they 
detach  the  affections  from  their  true  object,  indispose  to 
serious  thouglit,  create  a  distaste  for  religious  medita- 
tion, and  repress  all  sympathy  with  the  sanctuary,  the 
study  of  the  Scriptures,  and  private  devotion.  Assuredly, 
then,  the  class  of  men  here  intended  require  to  have  the 
lesson  kept  constantly  before  them,  "  this  is  not  your 
rest." 

We  pass  into  quite  another  sphere,  where  we  offer 
this  Scripture  as  a  sedative  to  anxious  care. 

'Anxious  care  I'  How  wide  the  sweep  of  these  words! 
Who  can  reckon  the  vast  concourse  they  represent  \  It 
were  easier  to  compute  the  hearts  which  have  not  some 
burden  than  those  which  have.  The  burdens,  it  is  true, 
are  sometimes  self-imposed.  There  are  persons  who  are 
constitutionallf/  anxious.  They  7m(st  have  something  to 
feel  distressed  about.  Their  eyes,  by  some  strange  mal- 
formation, have  one  lens  too  many,  and  it  is  always 
a  colored  one ;  so  that  everything  is  seen  in  a  false 
light.  Have  you  not  met  with  these  unhappy  people] 
Full  of  misgivings,  skilful  in  detecting  the  dark  side  of 
things,  never  looking  at  the  sun  without  seeing  the 
spots,  suspicious  of  a  latent  Sirocco  in  the  fresh  breath 
of  spring,  treating  good  tidings  as  the  proverbial  har- 
binger of  bad,  and  fearing  to  rejoice  in  the  mercies  of 
to-day,  lest  some  trouble  may  come  to-morrow !  Poor, 
unquiet  souls,  what  a  toilsome  journey  they  have  of 
it !     The  path  to  the  celestial  city  (and  they  have  many 


160  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

badges  which  show  that  they  are  true  pilgrims)  is  not 
over- smooth  at  best,  but  to  them  it  is  very  rugged. 
Someliow  they  are  attracted  to  the  rough  places.  They 
rather  choose  them,  because  when  they  come  to  a  spot 
where  there  are  no  rocks,  and  the  air  is  perfumed  with 
flowers,  and  the  living  water  sparkles  in  the  sunlight, 
and  the  melody  of  the  distant  harpers  seems  floating 
down  from  the  palace  of  the  Great  King,  they  begin  to 
apprehend  that  they  must  have  wandered  out  of  the  road. 
Nothing  will  do  which  savors  of  iiresent  enjoyment. 

Now  it  might  seem  incongruous  to  come  to  disciples 
like  these  with  the  admonition,  "this  is  not  your  rest." 
For  do  they  not  know  it  already  %  Is  it  not  this  very 
conviction  that  is  spreading  such  a  sombre  hue  around 
them '?  It  is,  and  it  is  not,  according  as  the  lesson  is 
understood.  What  they  gather  from  the  lesson  is,  that 
since  this  world  is  not  designed  to  be  our  permanent 
abode,  therefore  we  are  to  make  ourselves  as  uncomfort- 
able here  as  possible.  The  true  use  of  it  is  just  the  oppo- 
site of  this.  "This  it  not  your  rest:"  therefore  do  not  be 
surprised  at  the  anomalies  and  difficulties  you  encounter. 
Do  not  exaggerate  them.  They  are  frequent  enough 
and  serious  enough.  But  life  is  not  made  up  of  them. 
The  good  Master  we  serve  has  mercifully  mingled  them 
with  our  lot  that  they  may  keep  us  mindful  of  the  'rest' 
that  awaits  us,  and  help  to  discipline  us  for  it.  But  we 
miss  the  benefit  of  them  whenever  we  become  blind  to 
the  mercies  with  which  He  has  attempered  them.  Al- 
though our  "  rest "  is  not  here,  yet  have  we  resting-places 
here.  There  is  many  a  green  pasture,  and  many  a  spring 
by  the  roadside,  for  the  refreshment  of  weary  pilgrims. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \Ql 

The  hill  of  Zion  yields 

A  thousand  sacred  sweets 
Before  we  reach  the  heavenly  fields, 

Or  walk  the  golden  streets. 

And  if  this  be  not  enough  to  check  the  risings  of  mor- 
bid feeling,  it  might  surely  suffice  you  to  remember  what 
lies  beyond  the  flood.  That  you  have  a  'rest'  there  you 
do  not  question.  Why  n6t,  then,  make  the  best  of  the 
inconveniences  of  the  way  %  Why  live  in  constant  fear- 
fulness,  when  you  might  trust  a  Father's  care  and  be  at 
peace  1  Have  you  ever  found  that  the  nervous  appre- 
hension of  trouble,  as  a  cherished  habit  of  mind,  gives 
you  strength  for  present  duty,  or  fosters  your  meetness 
for  the  heavenly  resf? 

But  there  are  modes  of  anxious  care  which  cannot  be 
referred  to  this  source.  People  who  are  in  no  way  mor- 
bid in  their  feelings,  have  their  anxieties  about  their 
children,  their  business,  their  domestic  concerns ;  about 
public  aflkirs,  and  about  the  Church.  Do  we  chide  this] 
Do  we  say — '  It  is  foolish  and  wrong :  you  ought  to  know 
better  r  Not  that  exactly.  For  how  can  we  avoid  all 
anxiety  about  these  things'?  We  have  too  much  at  stake. 
Our  affections  are  too  deeply  enlisted.  We  have  seen  too 
much  of  the  peril  that  besets  all  earthly  interests  to  re- 
main quite  at  ease.  This  is  not  what  our  Heavenly  Fa- 
ther asks  of  us.  At  least  He  would  not  have  us  impassive 
and  stone-like.  It  was  not  for  that  He  endowed  us  with 
these  ardent  passions  and  tender  sympathies.  Life  fails 
of  its  proper  discipline  when  we  become  petrified,  even 
though  we  may  imagine  we  are  doing  God  service.  But 
we  need  not,  in  eluding  one  extreme,  go  to  the  other. 
If  we  must  be  anxious,  let  it  not  run  into  a  consuming 


162  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

anxiety.  Let  us  not  treat  the  source  or  occasion  of  it 
as  we  might  if  this  world  were  our  permanent  abode. 
Viewed  only  in  this  light,  there  might  be  cause  enough 
for  painful  and  lasting  solicitude.  But  there  is  another 
light  to  fall  upon  the  scene.  "This  is  not  your  rest." 
Does  not  this  relieve  the  shadows'? 

Take,  for  example,  matters  of  public  concern.  The 
course  of  events  both  with  the  State  and  with  the  Church 
may  fill  you  with  apprehension.  There  are  periods  when 
no  friend  of  the  Church  or  of  his  race  can  well  avoid 
this, — certainly  there  is  but  one  way  of  counteracting  it. 
Excluding  the  doctrine  of  a  Providence  and  a  retributive 
hereafter,  nothing  could  reconcile  one  to  the  moral  chaos 
which  the  world  presents  to  the  eye.  When  we  think 
what  it  might  be  and  what  it  is ;  when  we  compare  its 
governments  and  peoples  in  their  actual  condition  with 
the  state  they  are  capable  of  attaining ;  when  we  contrast 
the  relative  prevalence  throughout  the  globe  of  piety, 
justice,  benevolence,  and  content,  on  the  one  hand,  and 
ignorance,  oppression,  superstition,  violence,  and  suffer- 
ing, on  the  other ;  it  is  natural  to  anticipate  a  future 
which  shall  enwrap  the  race  in  still  deeper  darkness,  and 
consign  them  to  a  more  hopeless  misery.  This,  I  say,  is 
'natural.'  Looking  over  the  scene  from  any  mere  earthly 
stand-point,  we  can  hardly  avoid  it.  For  the  enigmas 
which  meet  the  eye  are  intractable  to  any  human  saga- 
city. There  is  only  one  key  to  them ;  and  it  is  our  own 
fault  if  we  have  not  secured  it.  "This  is  not  your  rest." 
Here  is  the  solution  of  this  mighty  riddle.  This  disorder 
and  confusion ;  this  reign  of  passion  and  cruelty ;  the 
triumphs  of  iniquity  over  virtue,  of  might  over  right ; 
the  slow  progress  of  Christianity;  the  jealousies  and  divi- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  153 

sions  in  the  church, — in  a  word,  the  whole  tide  of  events 
so  counter  to  our  plans,  and  apparently  so  pregnant  with 
evil — why  should  this  fill  us  with  forebodings'?  Is  it  not 
just  in  keeping  with  the  design  of  the  present  dispensa- 
tion— which  is  confessedly  preparative  and  transitory, — 
where  nothing  is  completed,  nothing  stable,  nothing  so 
isolated  that  you  can  pass  a  judgment  upon,  it  without 
knowing  all  that  has  gone  before  and  all  that  is  to  follow 
if?  If  this  were  intended  as  your  "rest,"  you  might  well 
be  appalled.  But  as  it  is  not,  you  have  your  remedy 
against  desponding  fears.  Whatever  untoward  aspect  the 
world  may  wear  to  the  eye  of  sense,  you  know  whose 
hand  is  on  the  helm,  and  how  able  He  is  to  control  the 
winds  and  the  waves,  and  how  certainly  He  will  bring 
the  ark  which  bears  the  hopes  of  a  ruined  race  into  the 
haven  of  perfect  peace.  These  tempests  are  only  helping- 
it  on  its  way.  And  it  is  part  of  their  errand  to  keep  us 
mindful  that  we  are  not  to  seek  our  rest  here. 

It  is  a  slight  transition  when  we  pass  from  the  sphere 
of  afixious  care  into  that  of  positive  trials.  A  broad 
sphere  it  is.  Few  of  us  will  get  through  the  year  with- 
out traversing  some  corner  of  it.  And  there  may  be 
those  here  whose  paths  will  take  them  into  its  stretches  of 
deepest  gloom  and  danger.  In  any  case,  it  will  prove 
no  bad  equipment  for  the  way  if  we  can  go  forward  with 
the  sentiment  engraved  upon  our  hearts  as  with  the 
point  of  a  diamond,  "  This  is  not  your  rest." 

We  have  seen  how  much  the  ricJi  need  this.  Nor 
less,  tJie  poor.  The  one  class  for  admonition  ;  the  other 
for  encouragement.  How  benign  its  aspect  towards  the 
toiling  millions  !  How  sad  that  so  few  of  them  should 
open  their  hearts  to  its  benediction !     Shut  the  Bible, 


164  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

and  the  poor  have  a  dismal  lot.  Hard  enough  it  may 
be  at  best.  But  how  much  harder  without  the  teachings 
of  our  Divine  religion !  Privation,  weariness,  anxiety, 
exposure  to  suffering  and  to  sin,  scant  comforts,  cravings 
never  satisfied,  to-day  like  yesterday,  and  to-morrow  as 
to-day, — if  this  be  your  «//,  you  drag  a  heavy  chain. 
And  is  it  not  all,  in  so  far  as  the  world  is  concerned'? 
Has  the  world  any  balm  for  your  wounds,  any  cordial 
to  recruit  your  waning  strength,  any  staff  you  can  lean 
upon  \  Can  it  hold  out  any  future  good  which  may 
compensate  the  trials  of  the  present  scene  ?  We  may 
not  deny  that  it  tries  to  counterwork  these  evils.  It 
comes  to  you  with  its  '  pleasures.'  It  offers  you  the  in- 
ebriating cup,  and  the  theatre,  and  the  gambling-table, 
and  a  wide  range  of  kindred  recreations.  With  these 
you  are  to  '  drive  dull  care  away,'  and  annul  the  curse 
of  exhausting  labor.  That  multitudes  attempt  the  ex- 
periment, is  self-evident.  And  it  were  uncandid  to  deny, 
that  with  some  it  is  attended  with  a  sort  of  success.  A 
dear-bought  success  it  is,  however.  These  so-called  plea- 
sures are  fragile  and  evanescent.  They  break  down  the 
better  principles  of  the  soul.  They  nourish  tastes  and 
habits  which  turn  into  gins  and  snares  for  the  unwatch- 
ful  feet.  They  augment  the  burdens  they  are  in'^'oked 
to  relieve.  W^here  they  staunch  one  wound,  they  open 
another.  Every  hour  of  '  enjoyment'  they  supply  is  fol- 
lowed by  a  longer  period  of  pain.  And  the  poverty  that 
was  barely  endurable  without  them  becomes  intolerable 
with  them. 

How  different  from  man's  is  God's  remedy  for  these 
trials !  When  He  would  come  to  our  world  to  rescue 
us,  He  takes  his  place  among  the  poor.     From  that  first 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  \Q^ 

Christmas  night,  eighteen  centuries  ago,  the  paths  of 
poverty  have  been  sanctified,  as  any  path  must  be  wliich 
the  feet  of  Jesus  have  pressed.  Then  Christ's  personal 
ministry  was  chiefly  among  the  poor.  All  the  doctrines, 
precepts,  and  promises,  which  fell  from  his  lips  and  those 
of  his  apostles,  were  replete  with  comfort  for  the  poor. 
And  as  He  tenders  them  other  supports,  so  also  He  cheers 
them  with  that  sweet  assurance,  "  This  is  not  your  rest." 
As  if  He  had  said,  "You  are  ready  to  complain  of  the 
roughness  of  the  way,  of  your  hard  work,  and  your  hard 
fare,  and  your  incessant  struggle  with  want,  and  your 
dread  of  coming  misfortunes.  But  did  not  I  tread  this 
path  1  Have  not  I  felt  all  its  thorns  ]  Have  I  not  prom- 
ised you  my  sympathy  ]  And  do  you  forget  the  lesson 
so  often  taught,  that  these  trials  are  but  for  a  moment '? 
In  this  life  you  must  have  them.  It  was  never  meant 
that  you  should  find  your  '  rest '  here.  But  there  is  a 
'rest'  awaiting  you.  Set  your  affection  there.  And 
when  you  attain  it,  you  will  not  regret  one  step  of  the 
way  which  has  brought  you  to  it." 

With  the  same  wise  and  gracious  forethought  does  the 
Master  address  this  lesson  to  the  sic/j,  the  bereaved.,  and 
the  sorrowing  of  every  class.  For  real  trouble  it  off'ers 
the  only  adequate  consolation,  unless  we  except  the  love 
and  sympathy  of  Christ,  and  the  sense  of  an  all-control- 
ling Providence,  which  are  properly  ingredients  in  the 
same  cup  of  blessing.  There  are  many  here  who  know, 
and  others  who  will  know  in  the  course  of  another  twelve 
months,  what  those  trials  are.  The  loss  of  health  is  a 
far-reaching  affliction,  for  the  shadow  it  casts  is  broad 
enough  to  cover  nearly  the  whole  sphere  of  life.  Happy 
is  the  invalid  who  has  learned  betimes  that  this  is  not 


166  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

his  rest.  And  is  it  not  to  instil  this  very  lesson  that  sick- 
ness often  comes  ]  And  to  enforce  it  that  it  is  frequently 
prolonged  through  weary  weeks  and  months  X  It  found 
you,  perhaps,  clinging  too  fondly  to  earth,  laying  your 
plans  for  a  long  course  of  prosperity,  and  doing  just  as 
you  might  have  done  if  you  had  really  believed  that 
this  was  your  rest.  Your  health  gave  way,  and  you  dis- 
trusted your  plans.  Earth  began  to  wear  a  different  face. 
Its  resources  flxiled  you  when  you  needed  them  most. 
There  sprang  up  in  your  bosom  longings  which  it  could 
not  satisfy.  And,  looking  upward  for  succor,  you  yielded 
yourself  to  the  conviction  that  your  true  rest  is  beyond 
the  grave.  Convinced  of  this,  you  found  that  feebleness 
and  suffering  became  not  simply  tolerable,  and  that  you 
could  cheerfully  accept  them  with  the  feeling — 

'  Glory  to  thee  for  strength  withheld, 
For  want  and  weakness  known, 
And  the  fear  that  sends  me  to  thy  breast 
For  what  is  most  my  own.' 

I  rehearse  in  this  a  familiar  experience,  and  one  that 
will  be  many  times  repeated  before  all  God's  people  are 
prepared  for  their  heavenly  rest. 

And  if  this  be  the  lesson  of  sickness,  how  much  more 
of  death!  Go  with  me  into  this  mansion,  with  its  win- 
dows closed  and  the  crape  at  the  door.  Sit  down  with 
this  group  of  mourners.  Can  you  take  the  measurement 
of  this  great  sorrow,  these  lacerated  affections,  these 
blighted  hopes,  these  pensive  memories,  these  undefined 
apprehensions,  this  loneliness,  this  desolation  ?  Can  you 
interpret  if?  Not  by  the  methods  of  any  earth-born 
philosophy.     You  can  neither  comprehend  nor  solace  it. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  167 

For  aught  you  can  do  these  mourners  must  '  refuse  to  be 
comforted,'  and  weep  on.  But  another  voice  falls  upon 
then-  ears, — "  this  is  not  your  rest."  And  instantly 
light  begins  to  irradiate  the  scene.  The  heavenly  '  rest ' 
is  revealed,  not  in  its  splendor,  but  some  broken  rays 
come  struggling  down  into  this  gloom,  which  are  enough 
to  show  that  even  death  itself  stands  at  the  very  portal 
of  life— 

'  The  bright  beginning  of  eternal  bliss, 
The  gleam  of  coming  immortality.' 

Other  trials  there  are  which  find  in  this  lesson  their 
only  adequate  alleviation.  Their  need  of  it  is  the  greater 
because  they  fail  of  the  sympathy  which  waits  upon  sick- 
ness and  bereavement.  In  the  class  of  trials  here  in- 
tended may  be  embraced  the  experience  of  ingratitude 
and  unkindness,  calumny,  the  estrangement  of  friends, 
and  also  the  blighting  of  the  affections.  These  troubles 
come  with  an  added  burden  because  they  are  ordinarily 
borne  alone.  It  may  be  pride,  it  may  be  a  false  delicacy, 
it  may  be  a  morbid  love  of  grief,  it  may  be  a  simple  con- 
viction of  duty,  but  the  wounded  spirit  declines  all  fel- 
lowship in  its  woe.  The  sense  of  wrong  is  keen  and 
deep-seated,  but  the  world  shall  not  detect  it.  The  quiv- 
ering shaft  may  hang  infixed  in  the  heart's  core,  but  no 
friendly  hand  shall  be  allowed  to  '  solicit '  it.  And  so 
you  nerve  yourself,  as  you  may,  to  suffer  in  silence.  Of 
course  the  bloom  of  life  is  gone  with  you ;  and  however 
festive  the  scene  into  which  you  enter,  there  is  no  mirth 
in  which  you  indulge  which  has  not  its  rmderflow  of 
wounded  feeling,  and  of  conscious  discontent  with  this 
treacherous  world. 


168  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

Now  of  what  avail  were  it  to  come  to  you  and  say, '  No 
strange  thing  has  happened  to  you.  Every  one  encoun- 
ters ingratitude.  The  workl  is  full  of  envy  and  un- 
charitableness.  On  every  side  there  are  people  to  whom 
the  best  sensibilities  of  the  heart  are'no  more  than  beds 
of  wild  flowers  are  to  the  huntsman  whose  horse's  hoofs 
trample  them  in  the  mire.  Why  mind  such  people '?  let 
them  say  or  do  what  they  may!'  This  kind  of  remark 
must  be  familiar  to  you.  But  it  does  not  help  you.  There 
is  no  balm  in  it  for  a  wounded  spirit.  Nor  is  there  in 
anything  which  the  world  has  to  offer.  But  it  is  not  a 
bootless  errand  to  come  to  you  and  say,  "  This  is  not  your 
rest."  Your  Heavenly  Father  means  that  you  shall  not 
take  it  as  your  rest.  And  to  prevent  this  He  permits 
these  trials  to  overtake  you.  He  knows  the  peculiar  dis- 
cipline which  every  one  needs.  Why  this  discipline  is 
precisely  what  you  require,  you  may  not  understand. 
But  there  is  a  reason  for  it,  or  it  would  not  have  hap- 
pened. One  thing  is  apparent :  it  sets  your  trials  in  the 
only  light  which  can  repress  murmuring  or  repining. 
For  it  reveals  God's  hand  in  them,  and  reminds  you  that 
they  are  simply  incidents  of  a  temporary  probation,  which, 
rightly  improved,  will  end  in  a  perfect  and  unchangeable 
'rest.'  This  conviction  will  take  you  to  the  mercy-seat 
for  succor.  And  while  it  may  not  abate  your  sense  of 
wrong,  or  your  feeling  of  bitter  disappointment,  it  may 
do  much  to  inspire  you  with  a  patient  and  even  cheerful 
temper  under  your  injuries. 

There  is  a  different  sphere  into  which  we  rnay  take 
this  Scripture  with  the  certainty  of  a  ready  and  grateful 
hearing.  The  conflict  with  sorrow  and  suffering  is  pain- 
ful enough,  but  it  is  nothing  compared  with  the  conflict 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  Igg 

with  sin.  'The  flesh  lusteth  against  the  Spirit,  and  the 
Spirit  against  the  flesh.'  '  I  am  carnal,  sold  under  sin.' 
'  That  which  I  do  I  allow  not :  for  what  I  would,  that  do 
I  not;  but  what  I  hate,  that  do  I.'  What  Christian 
does  not  recognize  his  own  experience  here  1  Who  does 
not  know  the  bitterness  of  this  warfare  '?  Who  is  there 
that  has  not  his  wounds  to  show '{  Who  has  not  been 
so  oppressed  by  it  at  times  as  to  feel  weary  of  life  I  Who 
could  endure  it  were  it  not  for  the  assurance,  "This  is 
not  your  rest  V  Terrible  as  it  is,  this  conflict  will  not 
last  always.  It  may  last  while  life  does,  but  then  it  ceases. 
Not  till  then,  for  He  who  calls  dead  sinners  to  life  wills 
that  they  shall  learn  something  of  the  evil  of  sin,  in  order 
that  they  may  know  how  to  appreciate  their  redemption. 
The  rougher  the  journey,  the  sweeter  will  be  their  rest. 
And  so,  however  they  may  rise  to  the  loftier  acclivities  of 
the  way  of  life,  they  shall  still  find  the  path  thick-set  with 
thorns,  for  they  sow  them  as  they  go,  and  they  go  on 
sowing  them  up  to  the  very  gates  of  the  celestial  city. 

Let  me  illustrate  tEis  by  the  testimony  of  a  most  un- 
exceptionable witness.  Writing  from  her  couch  of  weak- 
ness and  suffering  only  nine  days  before  her  death,  that 
singularly  gifted  woman,  Caroline  Fry,  says  to  her  friend : 
— "I  shall  tell  you  why  I  want  no  time  of  preparation, 
often  desired  by  far  holier  ones  than  I.  It  is  not  because 
I  am  so  holy,  but  because  I  am  so  sinful.  The  peculiar 
character  of  my  religious  experience  has  always  been  a 
deep  and  agonizing  sen-se  of  sin, — not  past,  but  present 
sin,  the  sin  of  yesterday,  of  to-day,  confessed  with 
anguish  hard  to  be  endured,  and  cries  for  pardon  that 
could  not  be  unheard.  Each  day  cleansed  anew  in  Jesus' 
blood,  and  each  day  loving  more  for  more  forgiven,  each 

12  '  .       ' 


170  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  XEW  YEAR. 

day  more  and  more  hateful  in  my  own  sight,  and  hope- 
less of  being  better,  what  can  I  do  in  death  I  liave  not 
done  in  life  %  What  do  in  this  week  when  I  am  told  I 
cannot  live,  other  than  I  did  last  week  when  I  knew  it 
not  %  Alas,  there  is  but  one  thing  left  undone, — to  serve 
Him  better,  and  the  death-bed  is  no  place  for  that. 
Therefore  I  say,  if  I  am  not  ready  now  I  shall  not  be  so 
by  delay,  so  far  as  I  have  to  do  with  it.  If  He  has  more 
to  do  in  me.,  that  is  his  part.  I  need  not  ask  Him  to  spoil 
his  work  by  too  much  haste."* 

These  touching  words  will  awaken  responsive  echoes 
in  many  a  disciplined  heart.  In  this  case,  the  lesson, "  this 
is  not  your  rest,"  had  been  well  and  thoroughly  learned. 
And  the  saintly  sufferer  was  eager  to  go  to  the  land 
Avhich  icas  her  rest.  We  are  all  studying  this  lesson. 
And  the  deeper  our  experience  of  the  evil  of  sin,  the 
more  earnest  will  be  our  aspirations  after  a  full  and  final 
discharge  from  this  exhausting  warfare. 

There  are  various  other  aspects  in  which  this  Scripture 
might  be  set  forth  as  an  appropriate  year-text.  But  it  is 
of  greater  moment  to  enforce  the  primary  truth  it  incul- 
cates. How  slow  of  heart  we  are  to  apply  ourselves  to 
it  and  to  keep  it  in  remembrance,  has  already  been  pointed 
out.  The  temptation  to  take  this  world  as  our  rest  has 
arrayed  on  its  side  the  decisive  bias  of  our  natural  appe- 
tites, the  whole  power  of  sense,  the  ties  of  blood,  the 
current  of  popular  example,  the  countless  fascinations  of 
earth,  and  the  remoteness  and  spirituality  of  the  true  rest. 
The  potency  of  these  influences  may  be  seen  in  the  despo- 
tism they  exert  over  the  mass  of  men,  and  still  more,  in 

*   Life  and  Letters,  p.  339. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  17I 

the  perpetual  struggle  they  impose  upon  those  who  attempt 
to  withstand  them.  The  necessity  of  resisting  them,  how- 
ever, is  too  obvious  to  require  argument.  Reason  and 
piety  alike  demand  it.  It  is  due  to  God,  and  to  our  own 
souls.  There  is  neither  solid  peace  for  us  here,  nor  hap- 
piness hereafter,  unless  we  remember  "  this  is  not  your 
rest." 

What  greater  mistake  can  any  man  make  than  to  sub- 
.  stitute  the  mere  vestibule  of  life  for  life  itself,  the  journey 
for  the  goal,  the  conflict,  with  its  scant  intervals  of  peace, 
for  the  final  repose  and  crown  !  What  grosser  indignity 
can  be  shown  to  our  Maker  than  to  allow  his  dominion 
over  us  to  be  usurped  by  the  creature,  and  to  waste  upon 
selfish  indulgence  the  life  He  has  given  us  to  spend  in 
his  service  !  What  baser  ingratitude  to  the  Saviour  than 
to  lavish  upon  the  transitory  interests  of  earth  the  love 
and  the  homage  which  are  his  due !  All  this  is  in- 
volved in  taking  the  world  as  our  rest.  Shall  we  not  set 
out  in  a  new  year  with  a  determination  to  shun  this  fatal 
error]  The  due  consideration  of  that  future  rest  would 
curb  the  tendency  to  rest  here.  It  is  a  rest  which  answers 
all  the  conditions  our  circumstances  demand, — a  rest 
from  sin,  from  toil,  from  suffering,  from  sorrow,  from 
death,  from  trials  of  every  kind ;  a  rest  which  embraces 
absolute  purity,  perfect  bliss,  and  an  everlasting  progres- 
sion of  the  soul  in  knowledge  and  holiness.  It  is  a  rest 
which  God  has  linked  with  the  present  life,  and  which 
owes  some  of  its  sweetest  attractions  to  our  experiences 
here.  The  one  sphere  is  in  order  to  the  other.  It  would 
often  check  the  rising  murmur,  and  cheer  your  saddened 
heart,  to  reflect  that  the  sorrows  of  yoru'  present  lot  are 
the  necessary  introduction  to  a  realm  which  knows  no 


172  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

sorrow.  It  would  chasten  the  ardor  with  which  you  pur- 
sue the  world,  as  well  as  moderate  the  grief  of  your  dis- 
appointments, to  remember  that  Avith  the  whole  world  as 
your  dowry  you  would  still  be  discontented,  unless  you 
could  secure  the  future  rest. 

Here  is  our  mistake, — that  we  set  so  lightly  by  that 
rest.  In  theory  we  profess  to  believe  that  our  best  friends 
are  there,  our  most  valued  estates,  our  truest  comforts. 
How  strange,  then,  that  our  thoughts  should  not  be  there 
also !  An  authority  we  all  reverence  has  said,  '  Where 
your  treasure  is,  there  will  your  hearts  be  also.'  Tested 
by  this  rule,  is  our  treasure  in  heaven  or  on  earth "?  Alas, 
we  have  to  confess  that  we  are  so  much  engrossed  with 
the  cares,  the  business,  the  plans,  the  possessions,  the 
trials,  of  earth,  that  we  often  seem  to  lose  sight  of  heaven 
altogether.  Here  is  one  main  source  of  our  unhappi- 
ness,  our  imfaithfulness,  and  our  danger.  Our  earthly 
blessings  fascinate  and  ensnare  us.  They  make  us  forget 
that  they  are  sent  only  to  refresh  us  on  our  way  to  the 
better  country.  Overtaken  by  misfortune  or  sorrow,  we 
halt  at  the  trouble,  unmindful  that  it  brings  a  gracious 
message  from  our  Lord  to  hasten  on  toward  our  rest. 
If  we  meet  with  ingratitude  or  injustice,  we  think 
more  of  the  wrong  and  its  authors  than  of  the  merciful 
purpose  of  Him  who  would  use  it  as  a  means  of  re- 
laxing our  hold  of  earth,  and  invigorating  our  faith  in 
his  promises.  Let  the  future  rest  have  its  due  place  in 
our  affections,  and  these  annoyances  by  the  way  will 
not  greatly  disquiet  us.  Even  the  graver  calamities  of 
life  will  lose  half  their  severity.  The  very  conflict  with 
sin  will  become  less  insupportable.     For  how  slight  the 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  J 73 

loss  or  discomfort  which  earth  or  hell  can  visit  upon  one 
who  is  fully  imbued  with  the  feeling  that  this  is  not  his 
rest,  and  whose  thoughts  and  desires  are  habitually  occu- 
pied with  the  heavenly  rest ! 

Let  this  be  your  resource  through  all  the  temptations 
and  afflictions  of  the  year.  Nor  this  alone.  Take  it 
with  you  as  well  into  your  brighter  as  your  sadder  hours. 
You  will  need  it  to  detect  the  snares  which  health  and 
success  spread  around  your  feet.  And  it  will  strengthen 
you  alike  in  your  efforts  after  personal  holiness,  and  in 
your  exertions  for  the  good  of  others.  Some  of  you  are 
no  strangers  to  such  labors.  If  you  are  ever  tempted  to 
abandon  or  abridge  them,  if  your  toil  oppresses,  and 
exhausts  you,  cheer  up,  faint  heart,  "this  is  not  your 
rest."  You  must  needs  work  hard  here  ;  the  Master  of 
the  vineyard  has  so  appointed.  He  knows  how  heavy 
your  task  is,  and  how  ready  flesh  and  blood  is  to  sink 
under  it.  But  He  toiled  much  harder  for  you.  And  it 
is  in  mercy  He  permits  you  to  do  something  for  Him. 
It  will  not  be  very  much  in  the  end,  but  He  will  treat 
it  as  if  it  were.  These  feeble  but  grateful  efforts  will 
have  a  glorious  recompense  in  the  rest  He  is  preparing 
for  you. 

What  greater  mercy  can  I  desire  for  you  than  that  you 
may  all  have  this  Scripture  written  upon  your  hearts  as 
by  the  finger  of  God,  "  this  is  not  your  rest."  To  some 
of  us  the  lesson  will,  no  doubt,  be  brought  home  during 
the  present  year,  in  a  manner  not  to  be  misunderstood 
or  forgotten : —  * 

"The  cradle  and  tlie  tomb,  alas,  so  nigh, 
To  live  is  scarce  distinojuished  from  to  die  !" 


174:  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

And  death  will  not  pass  us  all  by.  God  grant  that 
we  may  so  live  in  the  faith  of  his  holy  word,  and  with  a 
steadfast  trust  in  the  blood  of  Christ,  as  those  who  are 
humbly  and  joyfully  looking  forward  to  the  '  rest  which 
remaineth  for  the  people  of  God.' 


1867. 


X. 
''MY  GRACE  IS  SUFFICIENT  FOR  THEE." 

2  CORINTHIANS  xii.  9. 


The  speaker,  the  hearer,  the  occasion,  and  the  lan- 
guage, all  consph'e  to  invest  this  passage  with  a  peculiar 
interest.  One  of  the  first  thoughts  suggested  by  a 
perusal  of  the  narrative  in  which  it  occurs  points  to  the 
marvellous  dealings  of  God  with  our  Apostle.  That  such 
a  man  should  be  selected  as  an  apostle  seems  wonderful. 
Nor  less  wonderful  the  manner  of  his  conversion.  And 
here  a  fresh  marvel  presents  itself  We  have  no  evi- 
dence that  Paul  ever  saw  the  Saviour  prior  to  the  ascen- 
sion, nor  until  He  appeared  to  him  on  his  journey  to 
Damascus.  Signal  as  that  favor  was,  it  did  not  exhaust 
the  fulness  of  privilege  which  it  was  his  Master's  pur- 
pose to  lavish  upon  him.  He  must  also  be  taken  to 
heaven,  —  he  alone  of  the  apostolic  college,  —  distin- 
guished herein  even  above  '  the  disciple  that  Jesus  loved,' 
unless  (which  is  possible)  we  are  to  regard  the  apocalyp- 
tic visions  of  the  venerable  John  as  tantamount  to  a 
similar  rapture.  Paul  was  'caught  up  to  the  third 
heaven.'  Who  would  not  like  to  know  what  he  saw 
and  heard  there  !    But  he  was  not  allowed  to  tell.    This 

(175) 


176  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

only  we  know,  that  such  'abundant  revelations'  were 
given  him  as  to  imperil  even  his  humility.  His  faithful 
and  loving  Master  saw  the  danger,  and  interposed  to 
avert  it.  'Lest  I  should  be  exalted  above  measure.' 
What  an  ingenuousness  there  is  in  this  confession ! 
It  is  from  the  lips  of  a  man  honored  as  no  other  man 
has  been  since.  He  knew  that  it  would  be  read  by  mil- 
lions. But  this  shall  not  restrain  him  from  putting  it  on 
record  that  there  was  pride  still  lurking  in  his  heart, — so 
much  of  it,  indeed,  as  to  demand  a  stern  and  painful  dis- 
cipline to  hold  it  in  check.  "  There  was  given  to  me  a 
thorn  in  the  flesh,  the  messenger  of  Satan  to  buff'et  me." 
What  this  infliction  was  precisely,  we  do  not  know.  Nor 
would  it  comport  with  the  design  of  the  present  service 
to  consume  time  with  a  recital  of  the  numerous  conjec- 
tures on  the  subject  which  have  been  thrown  out  by  wri- 
ters of  every  age  and  country.  Enough  that  it  was  some 
bodily  disease,  or  blemish,  or  privation,  which  was  at- 
tended with  sufl'ering,  and  probably  exposed  him  to  deri- 
sion. How  serious  a  trouble  it  was,  appears  from  his 
extreme  solicitude  to  be  relieved  of  it.  "  I  besought  the 
Lord  thrice  that  it  might  depart  from  me."  "Thrice:" 
perhaps  a  definite  for  an  indefinite  number;  as  we  say, 
"A  hundred  times  over  I  have  asked  for  it."  So  he 
prayed,  and  ceased  not,  that  the  thorn  might  be  removed. 
But  it  was  not.  Something  better  happened  instead. 
"  My  grace  is  suflEicient  for  thee :  for  my  strength  is  made 
perfect  in  weakness."  '  My  strength  is  illustrated  in  the 
weakness  of  my  people ;  the  greater  their  helplessness, 
the  more  conspicuously  does  my  power  shine  forth  in 
sustaining  them.'  This  more  than  satisfied  him.  He 
was  no  longer  restive  under  the  galling  yoke,     llather 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  J 77 

did  he  cling  to  it.  He  was  now  as  much  bent  upon  keep- 
ing it  as  he  had  before  been  upon  getting  rid  of  it.  The 
gracious  answer  of  liis  Lord  had  thrown  a  new  aspect 
over  his  trial.  It  came  upon  him  as  a  fresh  inspiration, 
that  this  implication  might  be  made  subservient  even  to 
his  Master's  honor.  The  bare  hint  of  such  a  thought 
was  enough  for  a  man  whose  whole  being  was  absorbed 
with  love  to  Christ.  Passing  by  an  instant  transition  to 
the  opposite  extreme,  in  place  of  the  importunate  '  Take 
it  away!' he  exclaims,  'I  glory  in  it!  I  take  pleasure 
in  it,  and  in  every  type  of  suffering  and  shame  it  may 
bring  with  it !'  For  not  less  than  this  is  bound  up  in  the 
noble  confession  : — '  Most  gladly,  therefore,  will  I  rather 
glory  in  my  infirmities,  that  the  power  of  Christ  may 
rest  upon  me.  Therefore  I  take  pleasure  in  infirmities, 
in  reproaches,  in  necessities,  in  persecutions,  in  distresses 
for  Christ's  sake  ;  for  when  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong.' 
The  petition  and  the  promise,  it  will  be  observed,  both 
point  us  to  Christ.  'I  besought  the  Lord.''  Not  only  is 
this  the  usual  title  of  the  Saviour  in  the  New  Testament, 
but  its  import  is  fixed  by  the  apostle's  own  comment, 
'  that  the  power  of  Christ  may  rest  upon  me.'  It  is,  then, 
a  decisive  instance  of  prayer  addressed  to  Christ ;  of  prayer 
less  imposing  than  the  dying  invocation  of  St.  Stephen, 
'  Lord  Jesus,  receive  my  spirit !'  but  not  less  significant. 
The  response,  of  course,  is  from  Christ :  "  My  grace  is 
sufficient  for  thee  !"  The  word  '  grace '  here  may  have  its 
ordinary  meaning  of  favor  or  love.  It  may  denote  the 
aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit;  or  it  may  comprehend  all  the 
succors  which  St.  Paul  might  need.  Differing  in  form, 
these  interpretations  are  virtually  one.  There  can  be  no 
question  as  to  the  real  import  of  the  expression,  nor  any 


178  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

as  to  the  fidelity  with  which  the  promise  was  fulfilled. 
The  transaction  occurred  some  twenty-two  —  possibly 
twenty-five — years  before  the  Apostle's  death.  We  are  safe 
in  saying-  that  no  other  ministry  of  twenty-two  years  ever 
comprised  a  greater  amount  and  variety  of  labors,  together 
with  a  greater  amount  and  variety  of  trials.  In  the  Acts 
and  Epistles  we  have  some  notes  of  his  distant  and  toil- 
some missionary  journeys,  his  exposures,  his  persecutions, 
his  conflicts,  and  his  triumphs.  No  other  man  has  left 
such  a  record.  But  we  search  it  in  vain  for  any  intima- 
tion that  the  pledge  given  him  by  his  and  our  Lord  was 
not  redeemed  to  the  very  letter.  Alike  in  addressing 
the  scoffing  Jews  of  Antioch,  the  idolaters  of  Ephesus, 
the  folse  teachers  of  Corinth,  and  the  sages  of  Athens ; 
in  the  prison  of  Philippi,  when  pleading  before  Agrippa, 
amidst  the  perils  of  shipwreck,  and  on  his  arraignment 
before  Nero,  he  found  the  promise  surer  than  a  perennial 
spring  in  the  desert, — '  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  !' 
Whatever  friends  might  desert  him  in  his  hours  of  ex- 
tremity, there  was  one  Friend  who  stuck  closer  to  him 
than  a  brother.  Whatever  comforts  he  might  miss,  he 
never  lacked  the  sympathy  of  Christ.  In  this  he  found 
his  rest,  his  strength,  his  perpetual  reward.  As  the  eye 
of  his  Master  was  constantly  upon  him,  and  his  arm 
ever  around  him,  so  was  the  servant's  life  bound  up  in 
his  Lord's.  He  could  say,  without  a  figure,  '  To  me  to 
live  is  Christ.'  '  Not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me.'  His 
affection  for  Christ  had  in  it  something — I  will  not  say 
romantic,  but  surpassing  in  fervor  and  tenderness  that 
most  powerful  human  emotion  which  poets  and  novelists 
love  to  portray.  It  was,  indeed,  the  one  sentiment  of 
his  soul, — the  master  passion  which  subjugated  to  itself 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  179 

all  his  faculties,  and  constituted  the  centre  around  which 
his  entire  being  revolved.  He  had  had  '  much  forgiven,' 
and  he  '  loved  much,'  as  he  was  much  loved  of  the  Mas- 
ter. The  double  proof  of  this  is  before  us  ; — first,  in  that 
sooner  than  have  so  choice  a  vessel  sullied  with  pride, 
Jesus  would  send  upon  him  a  sore  calamity  to  keep  him 
humble ;  and  secondly,  in  that  having  laid  this  addi- 
tional burden  upon  him.  He  assured  him  that  neither 
this  nor  any  other  burden  should  ever  crush  him,  for 
"My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee." 

It  is  oar  ineffable  comfort  to  know  that  promises  of 
this  kind,  made  to  individual  believers,  are  the  common 
heritage  of  all  true  disciples.  And  standing  where  we 
do  to-day,  no  records  could  be  more  grateful  to  you. 
You  look  to  me  on  this  anniversary  to  propose  to  you  a 
Year-text.  Some  brief  Scripture,  which  the  memory  will 
readily  carry,  and  which  may  be  to  you  a  staff  to  lean 
upon,  as  you  traverse  the  yet  unknown  paths  of  this 
opening  year.  AVhat  better  service  could  I  render  you 
than  to  offer  you  this  precious,  comprehensive  statement, 
"  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee." 

'  My  grace !' — there  is  more  in  this  brief  expression 
than  meets  the  eye.  Here  is  a  promise  which  runs 
through  all  time.  It  is  addressed  to  many  millions  of 
people.  It  comprehends  all  the  possible  exigencies  which 
can  occur  in  their  diversified  experience.  It  necessarily 
implies  the  control  of  all  creatures  and  events.  It  sweeps 
through  the  whole  domain  of  Providence.  It  takes  hold 
upon  the  vast  issues  of  eternity.  Can  we  refer  such  a 
promise  to  any  finite  being  ]  Can  we  conceive  of  a  crea- 
ture as  being  all  this  to  his  fellow-creatures  ?  as  clothed 
with  functions  which  savor  so  much  of  the  Divine  that, 


180  I\fOT7VES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

if  they  be  not  Divine,  it  would  baffle  our  sagacity  to  name 
functions  which  would  bear  the  impress  of  Divinity] 

Consider,  in  this  connection,  the  force  of  the  personal 
pronoun  here  :  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  tliee^     '  For 
thee,  Paul.'     Is  this  the  meaning'?     Yes,  in  part;  but 
in  very  small  part.    What  He  was  to  Paul  He  is  to  every 
disciy^le.     The  promise  is  for  the  Church  universal.     It 
is  for  each  particular  Church.     But  it  is  no  less  personal 
and  private.     The  covenant  of  redemption  embraces  the 
whole  aggregate    of  his   chosen    ones, — 'ten    thousand 
times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands  of  thousands.'     But 
it  does  this  only  in  virtue,  or  through  the  medium,  of 
their  individual  union  with  Christ.    Often  has  the  thought 
arisen  in  the  minds  of  desponding  Christians,  '  What  if 
/  should  be  overlooked  ]    How  can  One  who  has  a  myriad 
of  interests  to  care  for  concern  Himself  about  me  ?'     But 
this  is  unbelief     If  these  myriad  cases  were  myriadized 
it  could  occasion  Him  no  perturbation.    What  could  dis- 
tract the  mind  of  Him  who  is  "  over  all,  God  blessed  for- 
ever V     "  Lift  up  your  eyes  on  high,  and  behold  who 
hath  created  these  things,  that  bringeth  out  their  host 
by  number ;  he  calleth  them  all  by  names  by  the  great- 
ness of  his  might,  for  that  he  is  strong  in  power ;  not  one 
faileth."     Sooner  could  He  forget  the  'name'  of  one  of 
these  stars  than  forget  thy  name ;  sooner  w^ithdraw  his 
care  from  one  of  them  than  from  thee.     Not  only  is  the 
Church  graven  upon  the  palms  of  his  hands,  but  so  are  the 
names  of  every  one  of  its  members.      Thou  wast  given  to 
Him  of  the  Father  '  before  the  w^orld  was.'     It  was  for 
thee  He  stooped  to  be  born  of  Mary;  for  thee  He  spent 
thirty-three  weary  years  in  our  world ;  for  thee  He  suf- 
fered and  died,  was  buried,  and  rose  again,  and  ascended 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  .   Igl 

to  the  right  hand  of  the  Father.  Dost  tliou  forget  that 
which  has  cost  thee  time  and  money,  toil,  privation, 
and  suffering  I  Thou  hast  cost  Jesus  of  Nazareth  too 
much  for  Him  ever  to  forget  thee.  And  thou  needest 
not  fear,  thou  doubting  soul,  humbly  to  appropriate  to 
thyself  the  sweet  assurance,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for 
thee." 

Tliis  view  indicates,  as  already  hinted,  the  amplitude 
of  Christ's  resources.  It  speaks  of  power — infinite  power. 
But  not  of  power  only.  The  word  He  uses  is  'grace.' 
And  this  savors  of  love.  '  My  love  is  sufficient  for  thee.' 
Why]  Because  it  is  the  love  of  One  whose  character  is 
infinitely  lovely,  whose  wisdom  is  commensurate  with  his 
love,  and  who  has  the  universe  at  his  disposal.  The  love 
of  such  a  being  carries  every  blessing  Avith  it.  It  gives 
a  new  relish  to  every  mercy.  It  takes  the  sting  out  of 
adversity.  It  makes  the  roughest  paths  smooth.  It  sup- 
plies an  unfailing  resource  when  every  earthly  prop  gives 
way,  and  all  earthly  streams  are  dried  up. 

But  this  is  too  general.  My  grateful  errand  to  you 
at  present  is  to  show  you  what  a  treasure  you  have  in  this 
text,  if  you  will  take  it  with  you  through  the  year.  The 
bare  statement  of  my  thesis  brings,  as  to  some  among 
you,  instant  occasion  for  it.  For  are  there  not  those  here 
whom  the  new  year  finds  restless  and  anxious  about  the 
future  %  You  are  shrinking  from  the  possibilities  of  this 
year.  In  the  distance  you  think  you  descry  reverses 
which  may  imperil  your  support.  Or,  there  are  tokens 
of  a  latent  disease,  in  your  own  case,  or  that  of  some 
one  very  near  to  you,  which  may  prelude  affiiction.  Or, 
the  aspect  of  public  affairs  fills  you  with  solicitude.  On 
this  last  point  grave  apprehension  may  well  be  felt.     For 


182  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

without  discussing  this  or  that  scheme  of  prophecy,  all 
schools  arc  agreed  that  we  are  approaching  an  era  of 
momentous  events,  and  more  or  less  agreed  as  to  what 
some  of  those  events  are  likely  to  be.  These  conclusions 
are  not  of  to-day.  They  have  been  floating  down  the 
current  of  prophetical  interpretation  for  two  or  tliree  cen- 
turies,— not  losing,  but  gaining  upon  the  confidence  of 
the  Church.  With  these  intimations  various  signs  in 
our  own  country  and  in  Europe  so  clearly  coalesce,  that 
the  expectation  of  great  and  early  changes  in  the  state 
of  the  world  prevails  even  among  men  who  never  open 
the  Bible.  In  this  aspect  of  affairs,  as  in  those  also  which 
seem  to  cast  a  shade  over  your  own  personal  future,  some 
relief  may  be  found  in  the  promise,  '  My  grace  is  suffi- 
cient for  thee.'  For  it  is  a  part  of  the  help  He  ministers 
to  his  people  to  bid  them  leave  the  future  in  his  hands. 
This  we  must  do ;  for  no  skill  of  ours  can  penetrate  the 
darkness  which  hides  it  from  us,  much  less  alter  in  the 
slightest  the  channel  through  which  it  is  to  flow.  Our 
duty,  then,  as  it  should  be  our  pleasure,  is,  calmly  to 
await  the  course  of  events,  without  yielding  either  to 
presumption  or  despondency.  '  Sufficient  unto  the  day 
is  the  evil  thereof  Very  sore  'the  evil'  may  be  when 
it  comes.  But  it  cannot  outmatch  your  antidote  :  "  My 
grace  is  sufficient  for  thee."  If '  sufficient^''  that  covers  all. 
I  have  spoken  of  those  who  may  require  the  aid  of  this 
promise  even  to-day  to  calm  their  anxieties  as  to  the 
future.  But,  indeed,  their  case  is  not  singular.  We  all 
need  the  promise,  and  we  shall  need  it  from  day  to  day 
throughout  the  year.  Not  all  in  the  same  form  of  relief 
or  succor,  but  all  in  some  form.     Not  all,  as  regards  the 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  Ig3 

same  office  or  function  of  the  Divine  Promiser,  but  all  in 
some  one  or  more  of  his  offices. 

Take,  for  instance,  that  character  so  often  challenged 
by  and  for  Him  in  the  IS'ew  Testament :  "  I  am  tlie  Light 
of  the  tco7'ld.^''  This,  like  every  other  distinction  claimed 
for  Him,  has  its  corresponding  occasion  or  necessity  in 
our  condition.  If  He  is  the  '  light  of  the  world,'  the 
world  must  be  in  darkness.  If  He  is  '  the  Truth,'  we 
are  in  ignorance  and  error  until  we  are  taught  of  Him. 
If  He  is  'the  wisdom  of  God,'  our  own  wisdom  is  folly. 
We  have  proved  all  this.  Is  there  any  one  here  who  has 
not  learned  that  he  is  short  sighted  and  prone  to  err  l 
Are  we  not,  the  shrewdest  of  us,  confounded  by  questions 
which  arise  out  of  the  most  common-place  transac- 
tions? Are  you  not  frequently  brought  to  a  pause  in 
your  business,  in  your  friendships,  even  in  the  micro- 
cosm of  home,  where  you  reign  supreme  \  Does  not  the 
question  spring  up  of  a  sudden,  and  confront  and  discon- 
cert you'?  'What  am  I  to  do  nowf  And  especially  in 
framing  plans  which  stretch  far  into  the  future,  and  in- 
volve precious  interests,  are  you  not  sometimes  oppressed 
with  a  painful  sense  of  your  insufficiency  which  makes 
you  cast  around  on  every  side  for  counsel  \  This  promise, 
then,  is  what  you  need,  'My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee.' 
It  comes  from  the  lips  of  the  only  infallible  teacher.  It 
is  from  Him  who  'is  Light,  and  in  whom  is  no  darknfess 
at  all.'  In  your  perplexity  He  proffers  you  his  friendly 
illumination.  If  you  will  trust  in  Him  He  pledges  it  to 
you.  The  problem  which  baffles  you  is  simple  enough 
to  Him.  The  subject  which  looms  up  before  you,  con- 
fused, misshapen,  intractable,  lies  before  his  eye  like  a 
landscape  under  a  cloudless  sky.     He  reads  the  answer 


184  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

to  the  question  which  agitates  you,  as  if  it  were  written 
upon  the  starry  heavens.  He  sees  the  path  you  ought 
to  take,  as  He  se^s  the  shining  galleries  along  the  firma- 
ment. He  can  make  them  as  plain  to  tjoil  His  grace 
is  sufficient  to  this  end.  And,  confiding  in  Him,  you  will 
not  seek  it  in  vain. 

Still  contemplating  Him  in  the  same  character,  let  us 
advert  to  another  sphere  in  which  this  promise  may  avail 
to  our  relief.  If  we  need  his  guidance  in  the  ordinary 
afi'airs  of  life,  much  more  in  the  quest  after  moral  and 
religious  truth.  The  helps  we  enjoy  for  studies  of  this 
kind  have  been  largely  augmented  of  late  years,  but 
they  are  not  in  advance  of  the  exigencies  of  the  times. 
The  controversy  between  faith  and  skepticism, — the  .'  con- 
flict of  the  ages,'  shifts  its  terms  and  positions,  its  alli- 
ances and  implements,  but  it  never  intermits.  The  as- 
pect it  has  assumed  in  our  day  is  attracting  towards  it 
very  much  of  the  erudition  and  culture  of  the  world.  It 
is  pre-eminently  an  age  of  intellectual  activity, — without 
a  parallel,  indeed,  in  the  Christian  centuries,  except  in 
the  revival  of  learning  after  the  crusades,  and  the  waking 
up  of  Europe  at  the  Reformation.  Not  to  refer  to  other 
departments,  the  physical  sciences  have  enlisted  in  their 
service  an  army  of  such  workers  as  were  never  engaged 
in  kindred  pursuits  before.  Nature  is  allowed  no  rest. 
She  is  pursued  through  the  heavens  and  the  earth — into 
the  bowels  of  the  earth,  into  her  most  intricate  forms  and 
shadowy  elements,  and  everywhere  she  is  followed  with 
unfaltering  footsteps,  and  solemnly  interrogated,  and  com- 
pelled to  surrender  her  secrets.  Amazing  it  is  how  many 
of  these  secrets  she  has  kept  from  man  for  six  thousand 
years.    Nor  less  astonishing  how  he  is,  as  it  were,  aveng- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  185 

ing  himself  upon  her  now,  in  the  prodigality  with  which 
he  is  forcing  her  to  disclose  them.  But  the  point  we  are 
concerned  with  is  this, — the  disposition  manifested  in  so 
many  quarters  to  extort  from  Nature  some  testimony 
which  may  be  used  to  discredit  God's  writte7i  revelation. 
Not  in  all  quarters.  Some  of  the  most  profound  and 
successful  students  of  Nature  deem  it  the  noblest  use  they 
can  make  of  the  treasures  she  has  yielded  them,  to 
hasten  with  their  gifts,  gold,  and  frankincense,  and 
myrrh,  and  lay  them  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 
Others,  however,  will  have  it  that  the  rocks,  and  the  gla- 
ciers, and  the  fossils,  and  the  nebulae,  utter  one  voice,  and 
Moses,  and  David,  and  Paul,  and  their  common  Lord 
and  Master,  another.  And  with  such  assurance  are  these 
averments  made,  that  even  fair-minded  inquirers  are 
sometimes  entangled  in  a  network  of  doubts  and  mis- 
givings as  to  the  absolute  verity  of  the  Christian  oracles. 
There  is  no  proper  cause  for  this  solicitude.  There  is  no 
volume  of  antiquity  the  genuineness  and  authenticity  of 
which  are  substantiated  by  so  many  and  such  conclusive 
proofs  as  the  Bible.  It  is  morally  impossible,  then,  that 
what  God  has  written  upon  its  pages  should  conflict  with 
what  He  has  written  upon  the  face  of  nature.  Apparent 
collisions  may  occur.  They  have  occurred ;  but  only  to 
be  reconciled  by  a  more  careful  scrutiny  into  the  sup- 
posed facts  of  science,  or  a  more  thorough  insight  into 
the  meaning  of  the  sacred  text.  In  this  way,  it  is  safe 
to  predict,  all  seeming  discrepancies  between  the  true 
records  will,  sooner  or  later,  be  disposed  of.  Meanwhile, 
we  are  any  of  us  liable  to  encounter  in  our  daily  read- 
ings, in  conversation,  in  popular  lectures,  assaults  upon 
our  faith  which  we  may  not  be  prepared  to  parry.    Nay, 

13 


186  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

the  poison  of  a  subtle  unbelief  may  so  insinuate  itself 
into  your  minds  as  to  jeopard  for  the  time  your  peace 
and  comfort.  But  be  of  good  cheer:  you  have  one  reli- 
ance which  will  not  betray  you,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient 
for  thee."  When  you  consider  that  He  who  utters  these 
words  is  the  Author  of  nature,  that  He  created  and  com- 
bined all  its  elements,  and  moulded  its  forms,  and  or- 
dained its  laws,  and  set  the  mighty  mechanism  in  motion, 
and  sustains  and  directs  the  whole  from  age  to  age,  you 
may  confidently  look  to  Him  to  preserve  you  from  being- 
ensnared  by  any  part  of  his  own  handiwork  into  the  sin 
of  denying  or  distrusting  Him. 

There  is  still  another  relation  in  which  this  promise 
may  be  most  helpful  to  us,  as  emanating  from  Him  who 
is  the  '  Light  of  the  world.'  Strictly  within  the  field  of 
theology,  and  in  the  study  of  the  Scriptures,  we  may 
have,  we  certainly  shall  have,  occasion  to  invoke  super- 
human aid.  We  interpret  the  Scriptures  aright  only  as 
we  are  enlightened  by  the  great  Prophet  of  the  Church. 
It  may  happen  with  some  of  us  that  we  have  mistaken 
the  nature  and  authority  of  the  Bible  as  the  paramount 
rule  of  faith  and  practice.  Others  may  have  been  edu- 
cated in  some  system  of  error.  Others,  again,  many 
others,  may  have  permanent  or  recurring  doubts  as  to 
particular  doctrines,  or  the  mysteries  of  Providence, 
while  still  another  class  may  be  painfully  exercised  as 
to  the  question  of  their  own  personal  affiance  upon  Jesus 
Christ.  To  these,  and  to  all  who  need  light,  what  com- 
fort is  there  in  the  promised  aid  of  the  lledecmer !  He 
v»'ho  is  Truth  itself  offers  to  guide  you  into  the  truth. 
Only  go  to  Him  with  your  scruples  and  your  fears,  sit 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  Ig7 

in  lowliness  at  his  feet,  listen  to  his  voice,  and  He  will 
make  his  grace  sufficient  for  you. 

In  the  next  place  let  us  glance  at  this  promise,  as 
uttered  by  the  great  Keeper  of  Israel.  We  shall  all 
need  his  Divine  teaching  this  year ;  but  not  that  alone. 
We  are  as  helpless  as  we  are  blind.  There  is  no  path 
leading  through  this  world  which  is  not  beset  with  dan- 
gers. The  whole  Christian  life  is  a  pilgrimage,  a  race, 
a  warfare.  There  is  no  progress  without  strenuous  effort, 
no  victory  without  a  conflict,  no  repose  without  its  perils. 
It  might  be  supposed  that  prosperity  would  insure  com- 
parative safety.  But  if  there  be  any  class  of  persons  who 
need  a  faithful  Keeper  it  is  the  prosperous.  In  your 
health,  and  wealth,  and  honors,  there  lurk  the  elements 
of  pride,  selfishness,  and  forgetfulness  of  God.  "  In  my 
prosperity  I  said,  I  shall  never  be  moved."  "  Soul,  thou 
hast  much  goods  laid  up  for  many  years  :  take  thine  ease, 
eat,  drink,  and  be  merry."  Every  one  knows  how  these 
toils  are  spread  around  the  seats  of  affluence  and  power, 
and  how  many  fall  into  them ;  how  many  even  of  the 
children  of  the  Church.  It  would  almost  seem  in  our 
day  as  if  the  Church  were  unequal  to  the  conflict  with 
the  world.  What  with  the  world's  frivolities  and  the 
world's  politics,  the  freshet  has  been  rising  higher  and 
higher,  until  some  faithful  but  timid  disciples  have  been 
looking  to  see  the  Church  floated  away  bodily  upon  the 
broad  bosom  of  the  turbulent  stream.  Just  this  catas- 
trophe may  not  occur.  But  certainly  the  "world  spirit" 
has  flooded  the  Church  far  enough  to  make  all  who  have 
any  real  love  to  the  Church  anxious  as  to  where  it  is 
likely  to  be  left,  if  the  foul  waters  ever  subside.  And, 
as  to  individuals,  there  is  no  security  against  the  surging 


188  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

deluge,  but  in  the  protection  of  Him  who  bore  the  ark 
in  safety  over  the  billows.  From  these,  as  from  all  other 
perils,  his  arm  can  defend  his  people.  And  it  is  with 
these  danger^  in  full  view,  as  He  looks  adown  the  vista 
of  this  to  lis  untried  year.  He  gently  says  to  every  dis- 
ciple here,  "My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  !" 

This  promise  has  a  broader  sweep  as  the  utterance  of 
our  gracious  Keeper.  There  are,  as  already  observed, 
dangers  and  difficulties  along  every  path.  They  vary 
indefinitely  in  kind,  and  degree,  and  origin.  They  may 
be  personal  or  official,  local  or  general,  temporary  or  per- 
manent. They  may  spring  chiefly  from  the  world,  or 
chiefly  from  the  arch-adversary,  or  chiefly  from  one's  own 
heart.  Rather  it  is  from  this  last  source  they  all  derive 
their  main  efficiency.  There  is  no  Christian  here  who 
does  not  count  iipon  waging  this  contest  during  the  year, 
or  for  as  much  of  the  year  as  his  life  may  be  spared.  A 
mighty  contest  it  is — without  respite  and  without  end, 
except  as  life  ends.  And  it  is  one  in  which  the  words, 
ivisdom,  strength,  fortitude,  constancy,  have  no  place, 
in  so  far  as  our  own  resources  are  concerned.  The 
wisest  are  foolish  here,  and  the  strongest  are  weak.  The 
man  has  not  lived,  since  the  Fall,  who  could  cope  in  his 
own  strength  wdth  the  adversaries  every  man  has  to 
meet.  Adam  himself  fell  before  a  single  one  of  these 
adversaries.  How  can  we  stand  before  the  three  com- 
bined 1 

Just  in  proportion  as  we  frame  a  proper  estimate  of 
this  conflict,  shall  we  appreciate  the  munificent  promise 
of  the  Master,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee."  No 
other  being  could  make  such  a  promise.  He  alone  lias 
the  moral  right  to  make  it.  He  alone  the  capacity  to 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  IgQ 

fulfil  it.  From  his  lips  it  covers  the  ground  completely. 
For  He  has  fought  out  this  fight  with  sin  and  Satan,  and 
vanquished  them.  As  before  Him  they  are  powerless, — 
nailed  to  his  cross,  and  made  a  spectacle  to  the  world. 
"  Who  shall  lay  anything  to  the  charge  of  God's  elect  X 
It  is  God  that  justifieth.  Who  is  he  that  condemneth  % 
It  is  Christ  that  died."  This  assures  the  victory  He  has 
achieved  to  all  who  trust  in  Him.  Satan  could  as  soon 
triumph  over  Him,  as  (absolutely  and  finally)  over  one 
of  them.  His  own  honor  is  engaged  in  the  warfare,  and 
it  cannot  have  an  adverse  issue.  It  is  as  well  for  Him- 
self as  for  them  He  has  said,  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for 
thee." 

This  insures  the  specific  aids  Christ's  people  may  re- 
quire. It  may  happen — it  must  happen — with  some  of 
you,  my  brethren,  in  the  course  of  this  year,  that  you  will 
have  cause  to  lament  the  weakness  of  your  faith,  the  in- 
firmity of  your  good  purposes,  the  inconstancy  of  your 
obedience.  You  will  have  your  seasons  of  dejection.  The 
greatness  of  your  conflict  will,  perhaps,  dishearten  you. 
The  yearning  of  your  souls  will  be  after  a  higher  sancti- 
fication,  a  closer  communion  with  God,  and  a  more  inti- 
mate sympathy  with  all  things  pure,  and  holy,  and  heav- 
enly, while  you  may  seem  to  yourselves  to  be  only  laps- 
ing into  deadness  and  formality.  Painful  enough  is  an 
experience  like  this.  But  it  has  its  grateful  remedy. 
This  Divine  promise  comes  to  you  with  its  healing  balm. 
It  bids  you  look  away  from  those  inner  chambers  of 
imagery,  so  '  full  of  unbelief  and  sin,'  to  Him  who  is 
able  and  willing  to  succor  you.  '  They  that  wait  upon 
the  Lord  shall  renew  their  strength.'  These  temptations 
and   reverses  which  buffet  you,  may,  perad venture,  be 


190  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

designed,  like  Paul's  thorn  in  the  flesh,  to  keep  you 
humble.  They  will  certainly  deepen  your  views  of  the 
evil  of  sin,  and  so  prepare  you  to  appreciate  the  more  the 
love  and  condescension  of  the  Saviour.  In  any  event,  it 
is  to  you  He  utters  the  cheering  promise,  "  My  grace  is 
sufficient  for  thee."  And  your  trustful  response  will  one 
day  be,  "  The  Lord  will  perfect  that  which  concerneth 
me :  thy  mercy,  O  Lord,  endureth  forever :  forsake  not 
the  works  of  thine  own  hands." 

If  it  be  the  Great  Teacher  and  Keeper  of  Israel, 
whose  voice  we  are  to  recognize  in  these  words,  we  as- 
suredly hear  in  them  the  accents  of  the  Friend  and  Com- 
forter of  his  people.  It  was  to  soothe  his  faithful  servant 
m  his  suffering  that  He  gave  him  the  promise.  It  did 
soothe  him.  It  made  him  kiss  the  rod  under  which  he 
was  smarting.  It  transformed  a  desponding  disciple  into 
an  exulting  conqueror.  This  was  but  the  beginning  of 
sorrows  with  him.  The  infliction  of  that  day  was  the 
harbinger  of  a  succession  of  trials,  the  like  of  which  few 
men  have  ever  experienced.  But  he  survived  them  all. 
This  promise,  with  its  inexhaustible  fulness  of  consola- 
tion, followed  him,  and  proved  '  sufficient '  for  him.  It 
Avill  be  '  sufficient '  for  you.  It  is  mercifully  hidden  from 
us  what  scenes  may  await  us  during  this  year.  But  the 
year  will  inevitably  bring  its  troubles  and  changes.  Out- 
ward reverses,  sickness,  bereavement,  these  and  other 
trials  will  do  their  bidding  here.  Where,  and  when,  and 
how,  sorrows  will  come,  we  may  not  say.  But  this  we 
may  and  must  say,  the  believer  has  his  sure  support  and 
refuge,  whatever  may  happen.  "  My  grace  is  ^sufficient 
for  thee."  What  does  this  import  but  that  "  a  man  shall 
be  as  an  hiding-place  from  the  wind,  and  a  covert  from 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  191 

the  tempest ;  as  rivers  of  water  in  a  dry  place,  as  the 
shadow  of  a  great  rock  in  a  weary  land."  There  are 
many  here  who  have  proved  this  during  the  past  year, — 
mourners  who  must  have  been  crushed  by  their  afflic- 
tions, had  it  not  been  for  the  sustaining  grace  and  sym- 
pathy of  their  Lord.  What  He  has  been  in  the  past 
He  will  be  in  the  future.  'As  thy  days,  so  shall  thy 
strength  be.' 

We  may  once  more  listen  to  this  promise  in  the  utter- 
ance of  the  ever-present  Helper  of  his  people. 

The  question  wdth  some  who  are  here  will  be — the 
question  of  all  should  be — 'Hoio  can  I  make  the  most  of 
this  neic  year?''  This  question  will  probably  borrow 
some  pungency  from  the  reflection  that  so  many  years 
have  passed  and  there  has  been  so  little  to  show  for  them. 
Take,  for  example,  the  year  just  closed, — what  results 
can  you  sum  up  from  your  diary,  as  connected  with  the 
true  ends  of  life  1  Meagre  enough  must  such  an  exhibit 
be  as  to  some  of  us,  and  unsatisfactory  as  to  all.  You 
would  fain  do  better  for  the  future.  You  would  dedicate 
your  powers  anew  to  God.  You  would  live  less  for  this 
world,  and  more  for  the  next.  And  your  inquiry  is, 
'  How  can  I  best  do  this  I  What  field  can  I  till  %  What 
sphere  of  Christian  activity  is  best  suited  to  my  capaci- 
ties and  circumstances '?  How  shall  I  employ  my  facul- 
ties, my  time,  my  accomplishments,  my  opportunities,  so 
as  to  do  the  greatest  amount  of  good  to  my  fellow-crea- 
tures'?'  Most  fitting  is  •  it  to  ask  these  questions  to-day. 
And  if  you  ask  them  in  the  right  place,  and  in  the  right 
temper,  you  will  not  ask  in  vain.  "  My  grace  is  sufli- 
cient  for  thee."  He  Avill  aid  you  not  only  in  resolving 
these  questions,  but  in  carrying  out  your  purposes.     He 


192  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

will  teach  you  how  to  apply  your  energies.  He  will  give 
you  prudence,  and  meekness,  and  courage,  and  perse- 
verance. He  will  bear  you  over  difficulties,  and  even 
enable  you  to  '  take  pleasure '  in  them.  And  thus  for  one 
year,  if  you  are  spared,  you  will  not  have  lived  in  vain. 

Here,  my  brethren,  is  the  path  in  which  it  behooves 
us  all  to  walk.  You  have  been  busy  of  late  in  framing 
your  plans  for  1867.  See  to  it  that  they  are  all  compre- 
hended in  the  one  grand,  pervading,  ennobling  purpose 
of  living  unto  "  Him  who  hath  loved  us."  Then  may  you 
go  forward,  leaving  yourselves  and  your  all  in  his  hands, 
and  assured  that  whatever  of  duty  or  sacrifice,  of  pleasure 
or  privation,  of  joy  or  sorrow,  of  life  or  death,  the  year 
may  bring  with  it,  the  promise  cannot  fail  you,  "  My 

GRACE  IS  SUFFICIENT  FOR  THEE  !" 


1868. 


XI. 

^'I  AM  WITH  THEE." 

ISAIAH  XLi.  10. 


Another  of  our  fleeting  years  is  gone, — how  swiftly, 
we  know  too  well.  May  I  not  also  say,  how  kindly  ] 
Let  me  borrow,  on  this  point,  the  language  of  a  note 
from  an  honored  and  cherished  friend,  received  on  New 
Year's  morning :  "  The  old  year  has  been  a  friend,  has 
loaded  us  with  blessings  and  privileges,  and  now  lies,  like 
an  honored,  loving  parent,  expiring  in  our  arms.  Shall 
we,  can  we,  lay  it  away  to  sleep,  with  the  generations 
which  have  preceded,  without  emotion  1  I  can  almost 
embody  it  in  personality  and  weep.  '  Sorrowing  most  of 
all  for  the  words  it  speaketh,  that  we  shall  see  its  face 
no  more.' " 

Another  aspect,  doubtless,  the  vanishing  year  must 
have  to  many  of  us.  Of  its  countless  mercies  we  can  all 
speak.  But  how  of  the  return  that  has  been  made  for 
them  1  When  an  undutiful  child  looks  upon  the  pallid 
face  of  a  parent  in  death,  it  stings  him  to  the  quick.  He 
could  defy  the  living;  he  cannot  contemn  the  dead. 
And  so  the  errors  and  sins  we  think  lightly  of  at  the 
moment,  rising  out  of  the  dead  past,  often  fill  the  soul 
with  sad  regrets,  peradventure  rend  it  with  remorse.     It 

(193) 


194  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

were  no  grateful  office — possibly  it  might  be  a  helpful 
one — could  we  sit  down  before  that  '  Book  of  Remem- 
brance,' where  every  act,  and  word,  and  thought,  of  every 
human  being  is  chronicled,  and  go  back,  leaf  by  leaf,  over 
the  pages  which  photograph  our  own  outer  and  inner 
being  for  the  past  twelve  months.  Such  a  review  awaits 
us, — not  restricted  to  one  year,  but  running  through  all 
the  years  of  our  lives.  The  anticipation  of  this  may  well 
arouse  us  to  greater  watchfulness  and  fidelity  in  respect 
to  the  future. 

But  still  another  reminiscence  survives  the  decay  of 
the  past  year,  as  we  look  over  it  to-day.  The  Scripture 
tendered  you  on  the  last  New  Year's  Sunday  as  your 
Year-text,  was  this :  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee." 
Have  you  not  found  this  a  truth '?  Whatever  your  expe- 
riences of  earthly  joy  or  sorrow,  however  diversified  the 
wants  which  may  have  chequered  your  lot,  has  He  not 
made  his  promise  good '?  And  are  you  not  here  to-day  to 
testify  that,  through  all  the  year,  He  has  made  his  grace 
sufficient  for  you  % 

Let  this  be  for  our  encouragement  as  we  launch 
forth  upon  the  unknown  sea  before  us.  '  Unknown  to  us :' 
but  there  is  One  to  whom  it  is  not  unknown, — one  eye 
that  scans  the  opening  as  it  does  the  finished  year ;  that 
reads  its  every  incident  and  result  as  if  already  written 
upon  the  starry  heavens.  Nothing  can  be  so  desirable 
to  us  as  a  Presence  like  this.  And  therefore  it  is  that  I 
offer  you,  as  your  text  or  motto  for  this  year,  his  gracious 
promise,  "I  am  with  thee."  It  is  addressed  primarily  to 
his  Church,  and  with  a  specific  reference  to  the  combina- 
tions formed  for  its  destruction.  But  it  is  repeated 
throughout  the  entire  Scriptures  in  every  form,  and  in 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  195 

respect  as  well  to  individual  believers  as  to  the  Church. 
So  that  we  have  an  undoubted  warrant  for  appropriating 
it  as  part  of  the  heritage  of  every  child  of  God. 

"I  am  with  thee."  In  virtue  of  his  Omnipresence  He 
is  with  every  one  and  in  every  place, — in  heaven,  in  hell, 
in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  sea,  in  the  darkness,  in  the 
light.  But  this  is  not  the  idea  here.  It  is  a  voluntary, 
designed,  and  gracious  presence.  It  is  true  He  is  with 
his  people  as  He  is  with  the  fields  and  the  rivers,  the 
forests  and  the  mountains ;  as  He  is  with  the  fowls  of  the 
air  a  ad  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills ;  as  He  is  with 
the  throngs  of  pagan  cities  and  the  wandering  tribes 
of  the  desert.  But  He  is  also  with  them  in  a  sense 
with  which  none  of  these  have  any  share  or  sympathy. 
He  is  with  them  as  a  Friend  and  Helper,  a  Redeemer, 
a  Sanctifier,  to  care  for  them,  to  defend  them,  to  com- 
fort them.  Not  to  anticipate  our  subject.  He  is  with  each 
one  of  his  people  in  the  completeness  of  his  Divinity,  in 
the  fulness  of  his  exalted  perfections.  Here  is  something 
that '  passeth  knowledge.'  We  cannot  explain  it.  Except 
on  the  highest  testimony  w^e  could  not  believe  it.  But 
we  have  such  testimony.  And  now  we  can  no  more 
question  it  than  we  can  question  his  being.  We  are 
assured  by  his  nature,  we  are  further  assured  by  his  word, 
that  He  is  as  truly  present  in  the  plenitude  of  his  glorious 
attributes,  with  every  one  of  his  children  as  if  He  had  no 
other  charge.  It  is  no  small  comfort  to  them  to  know 
that  '  the  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round  about  them 
that  fear  him.'  But  still  more  satisfactory  is  the  promise, 
"I  am  with  thee."  For  this  means  infinite  wisdom,  infi- 
nite power,  and  infinite  goodness,  as  the  guard  that  keep 
Avatch  and  ward  over  the  believer. 


196  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

One  reason  why  we  are  slow  to  credit  this,  is  the  end- 
less variety  of  affairs  that  claim  the  constant  supervision 
of  the  King  of  kings.  We  can  only  look  after  one  thing 
at  a  time.  It  is  the  infirmity  of  our  nature  tliat  if  w^e 
essay  to  carry  on  two  parallel  trains  of  thought,  or 
to  give  our  attention  simultaneously  to  two  distinct  ob- 
jects, one  or  the  other  of  them  must  lose  by  it.  But 
here  is  a  universe  comprising  a  myriad  of  worlds,  every 
sphere  with  its  own  peculiar  tenantry,  and  all  united  in 
subtle  and  inexplicable  relations,  the  nearest  orb  with  the 
most  remote,  the  lowest  race  with  the  most  exalted ;  and 
the  primal  law  which  underlies  the  stupendous  scheme  is, 
that  in  these  millions  of  worlds  no  child  can  be  bom,  no 
sparrow  can  fall,  no  wind  can  blow,  no  flower  can  bloom, 
no  insect  can  float  through  the  air,  without  engaging  the 
distinct  cognizance  of  the  Divine  Mind.  A  sovereignty 
like  this  awes  us.  The  half-skeptical  inquiry  v'ill  rise, 
'How  can  these  things  be'?'  And  it  costs  us  a  struggle 
to  believe  that,  with  such  a  charge  upon  his  hands,  He 
can  bestow  more  than  an  occasional  glance  and  a  transi- 
tory thought  upon  us  and  ours.  But  this  mistrust  has 
its  answer  in  the  history  of  the  race,  every  page  of 
which  illustrates  as  well  the  actual  supervision  exercised 
by  the  Supreme  Being  over  all  affairs,  from  the  greatest 
to  the  least,  as  his  special  guardianship  over  his  people. 
No  one  who  has  received  the  '  spirit  of  adoption '  need 
scruple  to  accept  the  assurance  to  the  very  letter,  "  I  am 
with  thee.'''' 

Not  only  does  this  carry  with  it  the  several  perfections 
of  the  Deity,  but  also  the  various  relations  He  has  been 
pleased  to  institute  between  Himself  and  his  people.  It 
is  a  pledge  of  his  presence  with  them  as  their  reconciled 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  I97 

God,  as  their  Father,  their  Redeemer,  their  Comforter, 
their  Sanctifier.  It  includes,  in  a  word,  whatever  may 
be  needful  to  them,  whatever  their  supreme  good  may 
demand.  When  a  child  is  setting  out  on  a  journey,  it  is 
enough  if  his  father  says  to  him,  "I  am  going  with  you." 
This  covers  all  considerations  of  expense,  of  protection, 
of  guidance,  and  of  comfort.  How  much  more  where  it 
is  God  who  says,  "I  am  with  thee!"  Let  us  w^eigh  this 
for  a.  little  in  its  adaptation  to  our  present  circumstances. 
As  already  observed,  we  cannot  read  the  future.  We 
know  not  what  a  day,  much  less  what  a  year,  may  bring 
forth.  No  one  would  be  so  daring  as  to  undertake  to 
prescribe  the  course  of  events  with  any  individual  or 
family  here ;  to  predict  that  this  household  will  have  a 
year  of  prosperity,  and  that,  a  year  of  calamity,  that  death 
wdll  enter  this  house,  and  not  that,  and  the  like.  This 
were  to  arrogate  the  prescience  of  the  Almighty.  But 
we  all  feel  an  intuitive  conviction  that  "  the  thing  which 
hath  been  is  that  which  shall  be  ;"  that  these  experiences 
will  all  find  a  place  somewhere  within  our  limits  as  a 
congregation ;  and  that  the  opening  year  will  witness 
substantially  the  same  changes  here  which  have  marked 
the  progress  of  every  preceding  year.  We  may  go  one 
step  further.  While  ignorant  of  what  may  await  us,  we 
are  certain  that  we  shall  need  the  help  of  this  Scripture. 
We  shall  all  need  it.  In  what  specific  form  you  may 
require  it,  or  I,  is  not  revealed  to  us.  But  that  occasions 
for  its  aid  will  come  to  every  one  of  us,  occasions, 
too,  of  daily  recurrence,  admits  of  no  debate.  And  this 
reflection  may  teach  us  how  to  appreciate  a  Scripture 
which  will  abide  with  us  through  the  year,  and  lend  us 
its  grateful  aid  in  all  possible  emergencies. 


198  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

There  arc,  for  example,  before  us  a  good  many  per- 
plexing questions.  They  arise  out  of  the  settled  routine 
of  domestic  life,  out  of  our  studies,  our  business,  our 
pleasures,  our  plans.  Some  of  them,  judging  from  the 
past,  will  be  readily  disposed  of  Others  will  baffle  our 
sagacity,  and  may  cause  prolonged  and  painful  struggles 
of  feeling.  This  may  occur  indifferently  with  matters 
of  private  or  of  public  concern.  It  may  be  a  question 
touching  the  health,  the  education,  or  the  settlement  of 
a  child.  Or  it  may  have  respect  to  the  well-being  of  the 
State  or  the  Church.  In  each  of  these  latter  spheres  the 
horizon  has  a  troubled  look.  In  either  we  may  be  com- 
pelled to  say  yea  or  nay,  when  the  consequences  to  our- 
selves or  others  may  be  very  grave.  In  these,  no  less  than 
in  his  personal  relations,  it  behooves  a  Christian  man  to 
'keep  a  conscience  void  of  offence.'  He  may  no  more 
yield  to  his  passions  in  acting  for  the  Church  or  the 
country,  than  he  may  in  redressing  his  private  injuries. 
He  may  not  go  with  the  popular  side  merely  because  it 
is  the  strongest.  He  may  not  shrink  from  opposing  error 
or  wrong-doing,  because  it  will  expose  him  to  reproach. 
His  Master  did  not ;  why  should  he  ]  The  single  in- 
quiry he  has  to  do  with  is,  "  What  wdlt  Thou  have  me  to 
do  V  This  point  ascertained,  he  must  go  forward,  even 
though  it  be  into  the  Red  Sea,  or  the  den  of  lions.  The 
embarrassment  lies  in  learning  the  will  of  God.  That 
we  are  liable  to  mistake  here,  will  be  readily  conceded. 
We  sometimes  err,  with  the  deepest  solicitude  to  be  right. 
But  certainly  it  will  prove  one  of  our  best  preservatives 
from  error  to  have  consciously  the  presence  of  the  "  Only- 
wise  God."  In  our  dilemmas  we  turn  instinctively  to 
our  friends  for  counsel,  as  we  should,  for  they  are  instru- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  199 

ments  in  the  hands  of  Providence  appointed  to  this  very 
aid.  But  we  need  a  higher  wisdom,  and  it  is  promised 
us,  "  If  any  man  lack  wisdom,  let  him  ask  of  God,  who 
giveth  liberally."  Here  is  the  relief  secured  by  the  Scrip- 
ture before  us,  "  I  am  with  thee."  Whatever  the  problem, 
however  tangled  the  web,  however  intricate  the  labyrinth, 
your  resource  is  at  hand  and  unfailing.  No  counsellor 
so  wise  as  He ;  none  so  patient,  or  so  indulgent ;  none 
so  easy  of  access,  or  so  willing  to  enter  with  a  genuine 
sympathy  into  every  question  that  concerns  you.  When 
you  find  (as  you  loiU  find  in  the  course  of  this  year)  your 
own  wisdom  baffled,  peradventure,  even  by  trivial  diffi- 
culties, it  will  cheer  you  to  recall  the  promise,  "  I  am  with 
thee."  "  Every  one  that  asketh  receiveth."  To  have  a 
friend  endowed  with  boundless  wisdom  always  at  one's 
side,  and  always  ready  to  hear  and  answer  our  inquiries, 
seems  all  that  we  helpless  creatures  could  desire,  and 
ineffably  more  than  we  could  have  any  reason  to  expect. 
The  habit  of  going  to  God  in  every  strait,  and  of  laying 
before  Him  every  question  of  duty,  is  eminently  conducive 
to  tranquillity  of  mind,  while  it  is  simply  a  becoming 
tribute  from  man's  littleness  to  the  greatness  and  glory 
of  his  Maker.  This  is  one  use  to  be  made  of  our  Year- 
text. 

Another  will  be  revealed  in  its  adaptation  to  the  vari- 
ous 2>hases  of  the  spiritual  life. 

As  regards  temptation^  it  has  a  twofold  bearing,  each  of 
which  is  important.  Of  course  this  is  a  thing  not  to  be 
eluded.  There  has  never  been  but  one  Eden  without  its 
Serpent,  and  it  was  only  for  a  short  time  he  could  be 
kept  out  of  that.  Temptation  ambushes  every  path.  It 
lurks  in  every  trial.     It  nestles  in  every  blessing.     It 


200  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

blends  with  our  recreations.  It  steals  into  our  devotions. 
It  waits  upon  all  ages,  sexes,  and  conditions.  You  may 
weaken,  but  you  cannot  annihilate  it.  It  will  track  you 
through  all  your  rounds.  It  is  thoroughly  mixed  up  with 
every  man's  lot,  and  incorporated  with  human  life  in  its 
every  make  and  mould.  It  will  follow  you  to  your  work 
and  your  play,  to  the  green  fields  and  the  broad  ocean, 
to  your  library  and  to  your  cloister,  .and  to  every  plaqe 
except  your  grave.  How,  then,  can  this  text  avail  us  in 
the  presence  of  temptation  1  First,  in  the  way  of  ad- 
monition, and,  secondly,  in  the  way  of  succor.  "I  am 
with  thee."  What  a  depth  of  meaning  in  this,  "I!" 
"The  high  and  lofty  One  that  inhabiteth  eternity;"  "the 
Lord  God  Omnipotent,"  who  is  "  of  purer  eyes  than  to 
look  on  sin  ;"  who  "  hateth  all  workers  of  iniquity."  He 
it  is  who  is  "with  thee;"  who  stands  silently  by  while 
thou  art  dallying  with  the  tempter,  hears  thine  every 
word,  notes  thine  every  movement,  watches  the  conflict 
in  thy  bosom,  and  records  the  whole  scene  in  his  Book 
of  Remembrance.  Is  there  not  something  in  this  thought 
to  impress  the  mind  of  a  tempted  man,  something  to 
awaken  his  conscience,  something  to  hold  back  his  hand 
from  the  forbidden  fruit  1 

But  this  is  less  than  half  the  truth.  When  He  says, 
"I  am  with  thee,"  it  savors  less  of  reproof  than  of  suc- 
cor. He  is  not  with  his  people  at  such  crises  mainly  to 
observe  their  conduct,  but  to  help  them.  It  is  his  own 
promise  that  He  '  will  not  suffer  you  to  be  tempted  above 
that  ye  are  able,  but  will  with  the  temptation  also  make 
a  way  to  escape.'  It  is  an  errand  of  mercy  that  keeps 
Him  near  you, — treading,  as  you  are,  a  path  thick- 
spread  with  snares  and  quicksands,  where  the  surest  of 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  201 

foot  may  slip,  and  the  strongest  fall.  He  would  have  you 
lean  upon  his  arm.  For  "  He  giveth  power  to  the  faint ; 
and  to  them  that  have  no  might  He  increaseth  strength." 
They  who  trust  in  Him,  if  they  fall,  shall  rise  again ; 
and  "  out  of  weakness  they  shall  be  made  strong."  "  For 
the  Lord  knoweth  how  to  deliver  the  godly  out  of  temp- 
tation." 

This  holds  not  merely  of  outward  snares,  but  of  all  the 
complexities  embraced  in  the  wide  range  of  religious 
experience.  The  most  arduous,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
most  imperative  service  laid  upon  the  Christian,  is  that 
of  '  walking  with  God,'  and  growing  up  into  the  Divine 
image.  If  we  consider  what  God  is  in  his  moral  excel- 
lence, and  then  what  man,  even  renewed  man,  is,  the 
idea  of  any  transformation  in  the  character  of  the  latter, 
which  may  assimilate  him,  however  remotely,  to  the  like- 
ness of  the  Deity,  seems  to  become  altogether  chimerical, 
especially  when  viewed  in  connection  with  surrounding 
circumstances.  He  has  his  home  in  a  world  which  is 
bitterly  hostile  to  the  objects  most  precious  to  him.  Even 
his  ordinary  avocations,  to  which  he  is  shut  up  by  the 
necessity  of  his  lot,  hang  their  oppressive  weights  upon 
his  spirit, — a  heavy  drag-chain  that  impedes  his  every 
step  heavenward.  This  is  plain  enough  in  respect  to 
manual  labor,  with  its  exacting  demands  upon  time,  and 
muscle,  and  health.  But  his  noblest  studies — those 
which  take  him  abroad  into  the  region  of  high  art,  or 
the  boundless  realm  of  science — are  attended  no  less 
with  unremitting  toil  and  with  earthly  hindrances,  which 
will  seriously  obstruct  the  path  to  the  Holy  City.  Nay, 
that  part  of  his  nature  which  retains  more  of  its  primeval 
purity  than  any  other, — the  domestic  affections,  and  the 

14 


202  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

sphere  in  which  they  bloom,  may  become  occasions  of 
sin,  and  have  often  served  to  alhire  the  soul  away  from 
God.  Added  to  this,  there  is  arrayed  against  him  the 
whole  hierarchy  of  the  pit — Lucifer  and  his  angels, 
seeing,  themselves  nnseen,  and  plying  their  mighty  en- 
ginery of  mischief  with  sleepless  craft  for  his  destruc- 
tion. And,  worse  than  all,  clothing  every  other  adverse 
agency  with  its  chief  capacity  of  evil,  the  unextinguislied 
principle  of  rebellion  in  his  own  breast  invites  attack 
from  all  quarters,  colludes  with  his  assailants,  opens  the 
doors  to  any  vagrant  band  of  conspirators,  and  frustrates 
the  best  laid  schemes  of  defence.  Is  it  not  marvellous 
that  any  man  should  reach  the  goal  %  that  the  colossal 
task  of  unearthing  the  soul,  and  lifting  it  up  into  a 
nearer  and  still  nearer  communion  with  God,  should  ever 
be  carried  forward  successfully  1 

Yet  this  happens  not  with  one  or  two  individuals, 
not  in  exceptional  cases  here  and  there,  but  with  multi- 
tudes. It  is  happening  all  the  while.  And  the  phe- 
nomenon has  its  solution  in  the  brief  Scripture  before  us, 
— "I  am  with  thee."  No  other  explanation  is  possible, 
since  there  is  no  other  power  in  the  universe  competent 
to  bring  this  contest  to  a  triumphant  issue.  The  cus- 
tomary resources  of  men  are  of  no  account  here.  Wealth, 
place,  genius,  learning,  experience,  are  unavailing.  But 
if  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us '?"  Without  Him, 
in  this  encounter  the  strength  of  the  strongest  is  as  tow 
in  the  fire.  With  Him,  "one  shall  chase  a  thousand, 
and  two  put  ten  thousand  to  flight." 

Nor  is  it  material  in  what  form  the  adversary  comes. 
It  may  be  a  persistent  temptation,  addressed  to  some 
specific  passion  or  infirmity.     It  may  be  an  untoward 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  203 

habit  which  has  been  nourished  by  long  indulgence.  It 
may  be  a  proud  predilection  for  skeptical  speculations. 
It  may  be  a  morbid  tendency  to  religious  despondency. 
It  is  all  one.  For  the  promise,  "  I  am  with  thee,"  covers 
the  entire  ground.  It  pledges  not  only  the  relief  you 
need,  but  all  you  need, — all  that  the  case  admits  of. 
Whatever  the  errors,  dangers,  fears,  and  conflicts,  this 
year  may  bring  you,  let  it  be  graven  upon  your  hearts, 
that  you  have  in  this  Scripture  an  unfailing  reliance, — a 
source  of  instruction,  of  wisdom,  of  strength,  of  peace, 
as  illimitable  as  the  being  of  Jehovah,  as  sure  as  his 
word  and  oath  can  make  it.  What  justification  will  any 
one  be  able  to  plead  for  spiritual  torpor  or  backsliding 
who  bears  in  his  bosom  a  scroll  inscribed  with  God's  own 
hand,  "I  am  with  iheeV 

There  will  be  occasion  for  this  Scripture  in  another 
field.  If  we  are  to  need  it  in  resolving  questions  of  duty, 
and  in  meeting  the  exigencies  of  the  Christian  warfare, 
it  will  certainly  be  required  in  the  trouhJes  of  life.  '  The 
troubles  of  life  !'  How  pregnant  the  phrase!  How  wide 
its  sweep !  How  broad  and  deep  its  shadows !  Happily 
for  ourselves,  the  troubles  to  come  are  as  yet  hidden  from 
us.  Our  ignorance  here  is  our  peace.  We  enjoy  to-day, 
because  'we  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow.' 
But  this  we  know,  that  'man  is  born  to  trouble;'  and 
somewhere  in  the  future,  we  must  all  meet  it. 

Our  ignorance,  however,  is  not  quite  so  absolute  as 
this.  There  are  those  who  know  well  that  as  the  ex- 
perience of  yesterday  is  renewed  to-day,  so  that  of  to-day 
will,  if  they  are  spared,  be  renewed  to-morrow.  With 
many  persons,  life  is  an  unvarying  toil,  a  struggle  with 
circumstances,  which  admits  of  no  respite.      The  feet 


204  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

which  have  trod  their  monotonous  round  this  week  will 
tread  it  again  next  week.  The  hands  which  are  wearied 
with  the  needle,  or  the  shuttle,  or  the  types,  through  the 
short  days  of  December  and  January,  will  be  still  more 
wearied  in  the  long,  sultry  days  of  July  and  August. 
The  poor,  nervous  frame  that  pants  under  the  exhaustion 
of  the  counter  or  the  school,  must  take  up  the  same 
burden  with  every  morning's  sun,  and  sink  down  at  night 
upon  the  same  anxious  pillow.  All  this  is  foreseen.  It 
may  be  none  the  less  painful  when  it  comes,  but  it  is 
anticipated  with  a  confidence  which  allows  no  hope  of  a 
reprieve. 

Other  trials  will  come  without  the  same  premonition. 
Of  this  kind  usually  are  the  reverses  which  sweep  away 
men's  estates.  A  thriving  business  is  undermined  by 
some  worm  at  the  root.  A  single  imprudent  venture 
converts  a  prosperous  house  into  a  heap  of  ruins.  A 
dishonest  agent  absorbs  and  dissipates  the  earnings  of 
years.  A  turn  of  legislation  precipitates  upon  the  coun- 
try the  alarm  and  devastation  of  a  general  bankruptcy. 
Through  whatever  channel,  pecuniary  losses  will  con- 
tinue to  occur.  Some  families  must  suffer  this  year,  as 
some  have  suffered  in  every  previous  year.  And  however 
lightly  we  may  speak  of  this  class  of  trials,  as  compared 
with  certain  others,  yet  are  they  very  hard  to  bear, — too 
hard  for  our  own  unaided  strength. 

So,  also,  of  sickness  and  bereavement ;  they  come  often 
unheralded.  And  whether  heralded  or  not,  they  will 
come.  Some  will  be  sick.  Some  will  die.  Some  who 
enter  upon  this  year  in  hilarity  will  begin  the  next  in 
tears.  We  are  not  called  upon  to  appropriate  these 
trials, — to  say,  this  or  that  will  be  my  lot.    Neither  reason 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  205 

nor  religion  bids  us  borrow  trouble  from  the  future.  '  Suffi- 
cient unto  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof  But  when  it  comes, 
and  to  whomsoever  it  comes,  there  will  be  needed  a  more 
than  human  arm  to  lean  upon.  It  will  be  a  privilege  to 
be  able  in  that  day  to  take  hold,  humbly  and  trustfully, 
upon  the  promise,  "I  am  with  thee."  This  may,  pos- 
sibly, be  required  in  a  sense  analogous  to  that  already 
suggested  in  reference  to  temptation.  The  lukewarm  dis- 
ciple, who  needs  to  be  held  back  from  sin  by  the  intima- 
tion that  God  is  with  him,  may  need  to  be  reminded  that 
his  trial  is  of  God,  who  means  that  he  shall  feel  it.  For 
there  are,  unhappily,  many  who  exhibit  great  stoicism, 
or,  what  is  still  worse,  positive  levity  under  affliction. 
They  are  the  successors  of  the  generation  reproved  of 
old :  "  Why  should  ye  be  stricken  any  more  %  Ye  will 
revolt  more  and  more."  A  grievous  thing  this  is, — a  sin 
of  crimson  dye.  It  is  bad  enough  to  abuse  the  mercies 
of  God ;  still  worse  to  contemn  his  judgments.  There  is 
scarcely  a  darker  portrait  of  the  faithless  Hebrews  sketched 
by  the  prophets  than  this  one : — "  Thou  hast  stricken 
them,  but  they  have  not  grieved :  thou  hast  consumed 
them,  but  they  have  refused  to  receive  correction :  they 
have  made  their  faces  harder  than  a  rock :  they  have 
refused  to  return."  Wherein  do  they  differ  from  that 
race  who  pass  through  scenes  of  sorrow  without  being 
abased  and  purified  1  who  remain  just  as  proud,  or  as 
covetous,  or  as  worldly-minded,  as  they  were  before  the 
rod  of  chastisement  was  laid  upon  them  ?  And  of  what 
unspeakable  importance  it  is  to  all  who  are  in  peril  of 
this  sin  to  hear  God's  voice  in  their  trouble,  saying,  "  I  am 
with  thee."  This  dispensation  has  not  come  of  chance. 
"  Thou  shalt  consider  in  thine  heart  that  as  a  man  chas- 


206  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

teneth  his  son,  so  the  Lord  thy  God  chasteneth  thee.' 
'If  ye  will  not  be  reformed  by  me  by  these  things,  but 
will  walk  contrary  unto  me,  then  will  I  also  walk  con- 
trary unto  you,  and  will  punish  you  yet  seven  times  for 
your  sins.'  Such  a  contest  as  this  with  the  Almighty 
can  have  but  one  issue.  "  Woe  to  him  that  strivcth  with 
his  Maker !" 

But  let  us  rather  dwell  upon  the  other  aspect  of  our 
Scripture.  There  is  no  trial  which  in  our  own  strength 
we  can  bear  as  trials  ought  to  be  borne.  Whether  it  be 
disease  or  death,  the  loss  of  property,  the  alienation  of 
friends,  the  miscarriage  of  our  plans  of  usefulness,  unjust 
disparagement  on  the  part  of  those  around  us,  the  con- 
flict with  iuAvard  evil,  the  depressing  effect  upon  sensi- 
tive nerves  of  unavoidable  and  constant  toil,  the  dead 
weight  of  poverty,  or  any  other  trouble,  we  must  have 
help  from  without,  or  miss  the  due  improvement  of  it. 
Of  this  help  the  believer  is  assured.  W^hat  would  be  of 
more  than  the  pledge,  "I  am  with  thee'?"  This  comes 
from  Him  who  has  prescribed  or  permitted  the  trial.  He 
might  have  withheld  or  averted  it.  That  He  did  not, 
shows  that  He  has  wise  ends  to  accomplish  by  it ;  that, 
on  the  whole,  He  deemed  it  best  for  the  subject  of  this 
discipline  that  He  should  be  afflicted.  For  '  He  doth  not 
afflict  willingly.'  It  is  not  'his  good,' but  'our  profit' 
that  mingles  the  cup.  And,  when  mingled,  it  is  his  own 
hand  that  presses  it  to  the  lips  of  his  child.  To  believe 
this,  to  realize  it  at  the  time,  is  to  take  from  the  draught 
its  bitterness.  Who  could  not  bear  trials  with  resigna- 
tion if  he  might  only  find  some  palpable  token  of  his 
Father's  presence,  and  feel  a  perfect  assurance  that  his 
wisdom  and  love  are  ordering,  limiting,  and  overruling 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  207 

them  X  It  is  only  unbelief,  my  brethren,  that  can  deprive 
you  of  this  consolation.  In  every  experience  of  loss  or 
pain,  of  evils  felt  or  feared,  which  the  year  may  bring  with 
it,  you  may  cherish  the  same  sense  of  his  presence  as  if 
the  glory  of  the  Lord  shone  around  about  you.  And  it 
will  recruit  your  wavering  faith,  and  cheer  your  despond- 
ing hearts,  and  send  you  on  through  the  gloom  with  fresh 
confidence,  to  take  home  to  your  breasts,  as  you  are  amply 
warranted  to  do,  his  gracious  averment,  "I  am  with 
thee." 

Again,  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  a  kingdom  of  service. 
The  very  act  of  coming  to  Christ  is  defined  by  Himself 
as  a  taking  on  of  his  yoke.  This  denotes  subjection  to 
his  authority,  and  obedience  to  his  precepts.  No  true 
Israelite  would  have  it  otherwise.  If  there  are  those 
who  value  the  Church  exclusively  for  its  privileges,  de- 
clining its  duties  while  they  lay  hold  upon  its  promises, 
who  spurn  the  cross  as  resolutely  as  they  grasp  at  the 
crown,  let  them  ponder  the  Master's  words  to  certain  of 
old :  "  Ye  seek  me,  because  ye  did  eat  of  the  loaves,  and 
were  filled."  It  is  not  with  pretended  disciples  of  this  sort 
that  we  have  to  do  now,  but  with  those  whose  professions 
are  intelligent  and  sincere.  To  his  true  followers  the 
question  will  come  up  at  the  opening  of  a  New  Year, 
and  it  will  often  recur  as  the  weeks  flit  by,  '  What  can  I 
do  for  Him  who  has  done  and  suffered  everything  for 
meV  It  may  conduce  to  the  right  solution  of  this  ques- 
tion to  review  the  past,  and  see  wherein  you  might  have 
rendered  Him  a  better  service,  how  you  might  have  ap- 
plied your  resources  more  widely,  or  carried  into  your 
work  a  higher  conscientiousness  and  a  purer  love. 

Without  disparaging  the  results  actually  accomplished, 


208  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

we  must  all  concede  the  comparative  inefficiency  of  the 
Church, — not  its  absolute  inefficiency.  For  whatever  of 
truth  and  virtue,  and  culture  and  happiness, — in  a  word, 
whatever  of  genuine  civilization  the  world  enjoys,  has 
come  to  it  through  the  agency  of  the  Church, — not  to 
speak  of  its  sublime  and  beneficent  bearings  upon  the 
eternal  destinies  of  men.  But,  as  compared  Avith  its 
means  and  appliances,  we  cannot  affirm  that  its  per- 
formance is  at  all  commensurate  with  its  promise.  A 
Divine  institution,  entrusted  with  the  sacred  oracles, 
the  Sponsor  of  the  only  true  religion,  completely  equipped 
by  her  adorable  Founder  for  her  august  mission,  not  only 
furnished  with  ample  secondary  agents  and  implements, 
but  made  the  peculiar  habitation  of  the  Almighty  Spirit, 
and  armed  with  the  powers  and  terrors  of  the  world  to 
come, — why  should  not  the  Church  long  ago  have  car- 
ried the  banner  of  the  cross  around  the  globe,  and  opened 
every  human  habitation  to  the  sweet  sunlight  of  the 
Gospel"?  Need  this  question  be  answered]  Have  we 
not  the  answer  in  our  own  bosoms "?  Is  it  not  because 
we  and  others,  who  claim  a  place  within  its  walls, — the 
thousands  or  millions  who,  from  age  to  age,  call  them- 
selves Christians, — have  so  little  of  the  '  mind  which  was 
in  Christ?'  Because  the  tithes  are  kept  back  from  the 
sanctuary,  and  the  flame  of  devotion  burns  so  dimly 
upon  our  altars,  and  the  things  of  earth  steal  away  our 
affections  from  God,  and  the  Avorld  divides  the  homage 
which  is  due  to  Him  alone '?  Perad venture  this  may  be 
felt  to-day  by  many  hearts,  and  there  is  a  waking  up  to 
the  high  responsibilities  of  the  Christian  calling,  and  a 
yearning  after  a  closer  walk  with  God,  and  the  ingath- 
ering of  more  sheaves  into  his  garner.     You  would  fain 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  209 

learn  the  Master's  will,  how  you  can  best  honor  Him 
with  your  property  and  your  talents,  what  field  offers 
the  best  scope  for  one  endowed  with  your  gifts  and  op- 
portunities. Or,  if  you  already  have  your  field,  how  you 
can  cultivate  it  more  effectively. 

It  is  pleasant  to  know  that  all  solicitudes  of  this  sort 
must  be  acceptable  to  God.  He  cannot  but  regard  with 
a  complacent  eye  every  secret  meditation,  and  purpose, 
and  prayer,  that  looks  to  a  more  thorough  self-consecra- 
tion to  his  service.  In  all  inquiries  of  this  kind,  and  a 
fortiori  in  all  the  efforts  they  inspire,  you  may,  without 
hesitation,  apropriate  the  promise,  "  I  am  with  thee." 
Your  present  or  prospective  task  may  be  very  arduous. 
You  may  distrust  your  capacity  for  it.  Your  courage 
may  begin  to  waver,  or  multiplied  hindrances  bar  the 
way.  Unthought-of  difficulties  embarrass  you.  Human 
sympathy  fails  you.  You  are  tempted  to  lay  up  your 
pound  in  the  napkin,  and  keep  it  there  until  the  Master 
comes.  But  this  is  unbelief  You  have  forgotten  who 
it  is  that  saith,  "I  am  with  thee."  Open  your  heart  to 
this  voice  from  heaven.  It  never  deceived  any  one.  It 
will  not  deceive  you.  Let  all  his  professing  people  set 
out  anew  with  this  sentiment  transfused  through  their 
hearts,  and  there  will  be  no  ciphers,  no  loiterers  here. 
Every  one  will  be  a  worker  of  some  kind,  in  some  field, 
and  all  will  work  with  the  cheerful  tone  and  temper  of 
children  serving  a  loving  Father,  whose  smile  is  their 
encouragement,  and  whose  presence  is  their  delight. 

Such,  then,  is  the  New  Year's  gift  I  offer  you, — rather 
let  me  say,  which  He  offers  you,  whose  condescending 
word  it  is,  "I  am  with  thee."  Take  it  with  you,  my 
brethren,  as  you  go  on  your  way.    Take  it  to  your  homes, 


210  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

to  your  schools,  to  your  shops  and  your  countmg-rooms, 
to  your  closets,  to  the  sanctuary,  into  every  sphere  ot 
duty,  into  every  scene  of  sickness  and  of  sorrow,  into 
every  scene  of  innocent  mirth.  '  Bind  it  for  a  sign  upon 
your  hands,  and  as  a  frontlet  between  your  eyes.  Write 
it  upon  the  posts  of  your  houses  and  upon  your  gates,' 
"I  am  with  thee."  It  will  be  your  light  in  darkness, 
your  strength  in  weakness,  your  shield  in  danger,  your 
chief  joy  in  prosperity,  your  comfort  in  affliction ;  and, 
should  your  pilgrimage  close  during  the  year,  your  solace 
in  death.  Through  all  the  changes  of  this  year,  in  all 
its  experiences,  may  you,  day  by  day,  and  hour  by  hour, 
have  the  faith,  and  the  courage,  and  the  patience,  and 
the  consolation  bound  up  in  this  Divine  promise,  "I  am 


WITH  THEE  : 


!'' 


1870. 


XII. 
'^A  LITTLE  TV^ILE." 

JOHN  XVI.  16. 


In  the  gracious  providence  of  God  I  am  permitted  to 
meet  you  again  on  a  New  Year's  Sabbath.  Two  years 
ago  to-day  I  addressed  you  in  circumstances  which  I  can 
never  forget;  for  the  service  here  was  followed,  within  a 
few  hours,  by  a  sudden  and  dangerous  illness  that  for- 
bade my  even  looking  upon  your  faces  for  many  months. 
One  year  since  I  was  separated  from  you  by  more  than 
a  thousand  miles.  So  that  to  be  allowed  to  spend  this 
day  with  you  is  a  privilege  for  which  I  desire  to  present 
my  earnest  thanksgiving  to  God. 

I  know  not  how  far  these  recent  experiences  may  have 
influenced  my  selection  of  a  Scripture  to  offer  you  this 
morning.  But  you  will  not  think  it  strange  that,  in  the 
midst  of  such  changes,  I  should  propose  to  you,  as  your 
text  for  the  year,  that  brief  utterance  of  the  Saviour, — "A 
little  while."  Brief  it  is,  but  what  a  depth  of  meaning 
it  embosoms !  There  are  moments  in  our  lives  which 
seem  to  be  hours ;  hours  which  might  almost  pass  for 
years.  And  thus  a  volume,  yea  a  great  folio,  may  some- 
times be  condensed  into  one  or  two  simple  w^ords. 

(211) 


212  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

You  will  recall  the  connection,  and  the  perplexity  of 
the  Twelve  on  the  occasion  here  referred  to,  "A  little 
while  and  ye  shall  not  see  me:  and  again,  a  little  while, 
and  ye  shall  see  me,  because  I  go  to  the  Father."  Their 
imperfect  faith  could  not  comprehend  this  language. 
Often  as  He  had  told  them  what  awaited  Him,  they 
could  not  believe  that  He  was  to  die.  To  the  very  last 
their  thoughts  were  of  an  earthly  Messiah  and  a  tem- 
poral kingdom.  Even  now,  within  twelve  hours,  per- 
haps, of  the  crucifixion,  they  study  in  vain  to  affix  a 
definite  meaning  to  his  words,  and  they  say  among  them- 
selves, "We  cannot  tell  what  He  saith." 

Nor  can  we  tell  all  that  this  expression  may  carry  with 
it  as  to  us  and  ours.  Some  things  there  are,  however, 
too  patent  to  be  mistaken,  the  due  consideration  of  which 
may  be  helpful  to  us  as  we  enter  upon  another  year. 

In  the  multiplicity  of  themes  and  objects  to  which 
this  phase  may  be  applied,  let  us  glance  briefly  at  some 
general  views,  before  bringing  the  thought  directly  home 
to  ourselves. 

Look,  then,  at  the  condition  of  the  world.  Eighteen 
centuries  have  elapsed  since  the  Son  of  INIan  returned  to 
the  Father.  He  came  to  our  globe  as  the  great,  the  only 
Renovator,  to  "make  all  things  new."  Whatever  ame- 
lioration has  taken  place  in  the  state  of  mankind  is  to  be 
traced  to  his  mission.  That  some  nations  have  emerged 
from  the  .  thick  darkness  of  paganism ;  that  there  are 
countries  enriched  with  the  blessings  of  a  true  civili- 
zation ;  that  millions  have  been  renewed  and  gathered 
into  the  Church  of  Christ ;  is  wholly  owing  to  the  incar- 
nation and  death  of  the  Son  of  God.  Let  us  not  be 
ungrateful  for  results  like  these.      But  no  intelligent 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  213 

Christian  can  be  satisfied  with  the  existing  state  of  things. 
No  one  can  contemplate  it  without  sadness.  The  mass 
of  the  race  still  sit  in  darkness.  Where  the  true  God 
has  one  even  nominal  worshipper,  five  or  six  embrnted 
mortals  kneel  before  dumb  idols.  Within  the  domain 
of  Christendom  error  and  vice  run  riot.  More  altars  have 
been  reared  to  philosophic  Atheism  within  the  last  half 
century  than  in  any  equal  period  since  the  Reformation. 
Unwearied  eff'orts  are  making  to  coerce  the  sciences  into 
a  gigantic  crusade  against  revealed  religion ;  and  scores 
of  savants^  rich  in  university  honors,  are  trying  their  best 
to  teach  creation  to  blaspheme  the  Creator.  Of  the  very 
churches  which  bear  the  name  of  Christ,  whole  denomi- 
nations have  so  perverted  and  overlaid  the  ancient  faith 
that  it  is  virtually  replaced  with  "  another  gospel."  Even 
in  the  Protestant  communions  there  are  well-developed 
tendencies  on  the  one  hand  towards  Romanism,  on  the 
other,  towards  Rationalism  ; — Herod  and  Pilate,  burying 
their  mutual  hate  to  cabal  together  against  Jesus  of 
Nazareth.  . 

The  picture,  it  is  true,  has  its  brighter  side.  There  are 
Churches  which  adhere  to  the  Gospel  in  its  purity.  There 
are  tens  of  thousands  of  believers  who  cease  not  to  tes- 
tify by  word  and  example  against  the  prevalent  impiety 
of  the  age,  and  the  more  pernicious  worldliness  of  the 
Church.  There  is  a  noble  army  of  faithful  workers  who 
are  toiling  at  home  and  abroad,  in  public  and  in  private 
spheres,  using  all  legitimate  methods  and  implements, 
sowing  beside  all  waters,  and  never  wearying  in  their 
efforts  to  save  the  perishing,  and  diffuse  the  blessings  of 
redemption.  There  are  powerful  nations  even  revolting 
against  the  Papal  despotism,  and  groping  after  a  purer 


214  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

faith  and  a  truer  liberty.     It  were  inexcusable  to  over- 
look or  disparage  this  aspect  of  the  times. 

But,  after  all,  the  most  sanguine  disciple  must  admit 
that  Christianity  has  not  made  the  progress  which  might 
naturally  have  been  anticipated  for  it.  Looking  abroad 
upon  the  hosts  of  error  that  are  marshalling  their  forces 
against  it,  under  so  many  flags  and  in  so  many  flelds,  he 
may  well  exclaim,  'How  long,  O  Lord,  how  longf  It 
is  a  timely  appeal,  and  directed  to  the  right  quarter.  For, 
however  inscrutable  to  our  poor  wisdom  the  course  of 
events  upon  which  we  are  meditating,  we  are  not  for  one 
moment  to  imagine  that  He  has  resigned  his  sceptre,  or 
that  He  does  not  hold  this  tiu'bulent  chaos  under  his 
absolute  control.  "Let  the  heathen  rage."  Let  false 
teachers  sow  tares  among  the  wheat,  and  false  prophets 
prophecy  lies.  What  then  1  The  Lord  of  glory  still 
sits  as  King  upon  his  holy  hill  of  Zion.  He  will  make 
the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  Him,  and  the  remainder  of 
wrath  He  will  restrain.  Let  it  be  for  the  comfort  of  his 
people  as  they  gaze  upon  this  turmoil, — "A  little  while." 
Whether  it  will  be  literally  so,  as  measured  upon  our 
dials,  we  may  not  aflirm  with  confidence,  albeit  this  is 
the  conviction  of  some  masters  in  Israel.  But  that  it 
will  be  '  a  little  while,'  as  measured  by  his  great  cycles, 
we  are  positively  certain.  In  his  own  good  time  He 
will  come  to  the  succor  of  his  people,  and  vindicate 
his  own  cause  against  the  confederate  hosts  of  earth 
and  hell.  What  He  may  permit  his  adversaries  to 
achieve  before  He  intervenes,  is  not  distinctly  revealed 
to  us.  But  there  are  intimations  in  his  word  that  the 
vast  tide  of  delusion  and  iniquity  has  not  yet  attained 
its  full  volume.     Paganism  was  allowed  four  thousand 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  215 

years  to  test  its  capacity  for  reclaiming  and  elevating  the 
race.  A  godless  Christianity— that  is,  human  reason,  as 
nurtured  and  expanded  by  the  institutions  of  that  re- 
ligion to  which,  in  requital  of  its  fostering  care,  it  would 
gladly  play  the  assassin,  is  now  essaying  the  same  prob- 
lem. Among  the  hosts  of  authors  and  philanthropists 
of  the  day,  there  is  no  class  more  conspicuous,  none  cer- 
tainly more  supercilious,  than  the  men  who  are  for  re- 
forming the  world  without  the  Gospel.  If  they  fail,  it 
will  not  be  from  lack  of  numbers,  of  learning,  of  as- 
siduity, or  of  self-confidence.  In  these  elements  they 
will  bear  a  favorable  comparison  with  any  school  of  re- 
formers the  world  has  ever  seen.  It  would  be  rash  to 
predict  that  their  assaults  upon  Christianity  will  prove 
absolutely  abortive.  They  have  already  ensnared  many 
persons  of  eminent  intellectual  gifts  and  of  high  social 
position.  There  is  every  probability  that  others  will  fol- 
low. Led  by  a  few  names  justly  distinguished  in  the 
walks  of  science,  sustained  by  an  army  of  smatterers,  and 
encouraged  largely  by  the  sympathy  of  the  popular  press, 
it  were  not  strange  if  they  should  succeed  to  some  extent 
in  poisoning  the  public  mind  against  the  evangelical 
faith.  Nor  is  the  other  wing  of  this  allied  force  in  a  less 
promising  way.  The  Rationalists  are  assailing  the  Church 
from  without ;  the  Hitualists  are  plying  their  enginery 
within.  Those  deal  in  open  attack.  These  are  sappers 
and  miners.  Inimical  to  each  other,  they  are  alike  hos- 
tile to  spiritual  religion.  The  final  triumph  of  one  party 
would  land  the  race  in  bald  atheism.  That  of  the  other 
would  renew  the  formalism,  the  superstition,  and  the  per- 
secutions of  the  Dark  Ages.  That  each  may  succeed  in 
a  measure  is  not  unlikely.     The  wisdom  of  this  world. 


216  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

peradventure,  must  needs  have  this  further  trial,  that  all 
men  may  see  its  impotency  in  devising  any  effective 
remedial  system,  even  when  equipped  with  weapons  it 
has  covertly  stolen  from  the  armory  of  Christianity. 

For  the  ultimate  result  is  not  doubtful.  The  humble 
believer  has  as  httle  reason  to  fear  for  the  final  safety 
and  triumph  of  the  Church,  as  Noah  and  his  family  had 
for  the  safety  of  the  ark.  The  same  sleepless  eye  that 
watched  over  the  ark,  and  the  same  omnipotent  hand 
that  guarded  it,  are  enlisted  on  behalf  of  the  Church. 
A  barque  that  has  ridden  out  the  storms  of  sixty  cen- 
turies, is  not  going  to  founder  as  it  nears  the  port.  In 
'  a  little  ichile'  He  that  shall  come,  will  come  and  will 
not  tarry.  "  Strengthen  ye  the  weak  hands  and  confirm 
the  feeble  knees.  Say  to  them  that  are  of  a  fearful  heart, 
Be  strong,  fear  not:  Behold,  your  God  will  come  with 
vengeance,  even  God  with  a  recompense:  He  will  come 
and  save  you.  And  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord  shall  re- 
turn and  come  to  Zion  with  songs  and  everlasting  joy 
upon  their  heads:  they  shall  obtain  joy  and  gladness, 
and  sorrow  and  sighing  shall  flee  away." 

If  I  have  dwelt  somewhat  upon  this  topic,  it  is  because 
there  is  nothing  more  prominent  in  the  outlook  which 
greets  us  at  the  opening  of  this  year,  than  the  relations 
of  pure  Christianity  with  the  numerous  bands  of  errorists 
who  are  assailing  it  on  every  side,  and  constantly  receiv- 
ing fresh  reinforcements.  We  may  thank  God  and  take 
courage,  when  we  reflect  that  this  can  last  only  for  '  a 
little  while.' 

But  let  us  come  nearer  home.  This  year-text  has  its 
immediate  personal  lessons  for  us  all — lessons  so  many 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  217 

and  so  varied  that  the  only  embarrassment  lies  in  decid- 
ing what  line  of  illustration  to  adopt. 

One  thing  is  apparent:  —  if  this  thought,  "a  little 
while,"  were  so  incorporated  with  our  being  that  we 
could  not,  without  an  effort,  divest  ourselves  of  it,  it  would 
tell  with  great  power  upon  the  issues  of  this  new  year. 
Once,  perhaps  once  only,  its  full  impression  has  been  ex- 
emplified. There  was  an  unwearied  worker  who  said, 
"  I  must  work  the  works  of  Him  that  sent  me  while  it  is 
day;  the  night  cometh  when  no  man  can  work."  With 
our  blessed  Master  it  was  always — "  a  little  while."  He 
never  lost  the  feeling,  even  for  a  moment.  There  was  no 
faltering  of  hands  or  feet,  of  heart  or  tongue.  And  the 
results — who  shall  compute  them '?  Into  that  one  short 
life  were  condensed  ages  upon  ages  of  other  lives,  whether 
human  or  seraphic.  Nay,  we  may  not  degrade  his  mis- 
sion by  any  comparison,  save  in  the  way  of  contrast.  In 
that  "  little  while"  of  his  earthly  pilgrimage  were  bound 
up  issues  which  demand  the  universe  for  their  theatre, 
and  eternity  for  their  development. 

Yet  Ave  may  without  irreverence  claim,  that  many 
others  have  lived  measurably  under  the  influence  of  this 
feeling ;  and  every  one  of  them  has  had  something  to 
show  for  life.  You  will  recall  examples  of  this  kind 
which  embellish  the  annals  of  the  various  professions  and 
occupations — statesmen,  captains,  authors,  jurists,  me- 
chanics, merchants.  Wherever  we  find  a  man  who  has 
taken  it  for  his  motto,  "a  little  while,"  he  is  certain  to 
bring  something  to  pass — something  good  or  evil.  The 
human  mind,  even  in  its  lower  stages  of  culture,  is  a  cun- 
ning piece  of  mechanism  which  cannot  be  kept  in  con- 
stant and  energetic  activity  without  making  its  power 

15 


218  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

felt  somewhere.  No  petty  asteroid  can  sweep  along  its 
orbit  without  affecting  other  asteroids,  and  planets  even. 
And  when  it  comes  to  the  higher  sphere  of  religion  and 
morals,  an  earnest  life  can  no  more  fail  of  yielding  fruit 
than  could  the  trees  in  the  Garden  of  Eden. 

Varying  indefinitely  as  we  do  in  our  gifts  and  advan- 
tages, what  we  lack,  any  of  us,  is  not  so  much  talents  or 
opportunity,  as  love,  and  zeal,  and  devotion  to  our  work. 
It  is  not  written,  as  it  should  be,  in  our  hearts,  and  upon 
the  palms  of  our  hands — "a  little  while."  We  work, 
too  often,  as  if  life  were  still  measured  by  centuries.  Our 
years  are  spent  in  getting  ready  to  live;  and  just  as  the 
lamp  is  well  filled,  and  trimmed,  and  burnished,  the 
glimmering  flame  that  was  to  have  blazed  forth  its  s])len- 
dors,  goes  out.  It  may  put  us  on  our  guard  against  this 
common  and  fatal  mistake  to  consider,  though  in  two  or 
three  particulars  only,  the  work  we  have  to  do,  and  to 
deduce  hence  how  needful  it  is  that  we  go  about  it  with 
the  feeling — "a  little  while." 

If  I  mention  self-culture.,  what  images  of  neglect, 
what  hopes  and  longings,  what  despondencies  and  pos- 
sibilities, rise  before  the  mind.  It  belongs  to  the  alpha- 
bet of  our  religion,  that  every  talent  canies  with  it  its 
own  law  of  improvement;  and  that  all  our  gifts  and  ac- 
quisitions are  to  be  dedicated  to  God.  Up  to  a  certain 
age,  we  are  'under  tutors  and  governors.'  If  they  and 
we  are  true  to  each  other,  the  process  of  culture  will  be 
well  inaugurated.  But  it  is  a  beginning  only.  What 
we  technically  style  '  an  education,'  is  mainly  a  training 
of  the  faculties  for  their  work.  That  multitudes  never 
get  beyond  this — come  to  a  stand  when  dismissed  from 
school  or  college,  and  learn,  afterwards,  only  what  comes 
by  a  sort  of  absorption  in  the  unavoidable  intercourse 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  219 

of  society,  and  the  current  of  events, — is  as  true  as  it  is 
humiliating.  We  all  see  and  deplore  their  error.  Pos- 
sibly in  its  extreme  type,  we  elude  it.  But  a  narrow 
census  would  comprehend  those  who  really  make  of  life 
all  that  might  and  should  be  made  of  it. 

Many  fail  from  the  want  of  a  plan.  There  is  no  definite 
object  they  propose  to  themselves :  certainly  there  are  no 
definite  methods  for  attaining  it.  Working  without  order 
or  system,  their  random  efforts  miscarry  because  they  lack 
aim  and  coherence.  Something  more  than  strength  is 
needed  to  wield  a  sledge  to  good  purpose,  even  though 
it  be  the  strength  of  a  Colossus.  Just  here  lies  the  secret 
of  many  a  man's  failure  whose  generous  gifts  gave  pre- 
sage of  a  brilliant  success.  The  swiftest  barque  will  make 
a  long  voyage,  or  fail  of  reaching  port  altogether,  if,  in- 
stead of  keeping  her  course,  she  suffers  the  capricious 
winds  to  carry  her  where  they  choose.  It  is  essential  to 
live  for  something,  to  know  what  that  something  is,  to 
keep  it  ever  in  view,  and  to  select  the  aptest  means  for 
accomplishing  it.  In  each  of  these  particulars  we  may 
derive  a  wholesome  stimulus  from  the  thought — "a  little 
while."  It  would  aid  us  in  choosing  an  object  worthy  in 
itself,  and  suited  to  our  situation  and  capacities.  It  would 
prompt  to  a  prudent  husbanding  of  our  resources  in  the 
prosecution  of  the  chosen  purpose.  It  would  check  dis- 
cursive and  impotent  labors  in  pursuit  of  ahen  ends.  It 
would  enforce  the  necessity  of  resolute,  efficient  working- 
while  the  day  lasts. 

'Self-culture,'  it  need  scarcely  be  observed,  comprises 
the  whole  man.  To  speak  of  the  intellectual  powers 
chiefly,  how  slothful  we  are,  for  the  most  part,  in  our  quest 
of  knowledge  !    I  confess  that  to  sit  down  in  a  great  library 


220  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

and  make  a  survey  of  tlie  croAvded  shelves,  is  apt  to  awaken 
a  feeling-  of  despondency.  '  Here  are  ten  thousand  books 
I  should  like  to  read.  Could  I  live  as  long  as  Mcthusa- 
leli,  I  might.  As  it  is,  a  few  volumes  are  all  I  could  com- 
pass. I  will  not  give  my  time  to  so  fruitless  a  task.' 
Thus  you  soliloquize,  but  not  wisely.  The  craving  after 
knowledge  is  natural  and  healthful.  And  you  are  right 
in  the  assumption  that  it  cannot  be  satisfied  within  the 
brief  term  of  human  life.  Neither  could  it  have  been 
with  the  primeval  longevity  which  the  sight  of  a  library 
makes  you  covet.  Were  a  special  dispensation  to  spare 
you  till  you  had  read  all  these  books,  you  would  only 
crave  more.  This  is  one  of  the  tokens  of  the  soul's  im- 
mortality— this  perpetual  yearning  after  truth  which,  in- 
stead of  being  sated,  only  grows  by  indulgence.  It  points 
ever  to  the  future,  and  will  still  point  to  the  future  when 
this  mortal  shall  have  put  on  immortality.  Does  any  one 
doubt  that  the  angels  are  thirsting  for  knowledge,  as  we 
are'? 

The  inability,  then,  to  master  a  whole  library  need  not 
dishearten  you.  That  is  not  the  design  of  a  library.  It 
is  simply  an  Encyclopaedia — for  reference  as  to  all  sub- 
jects, for  the  study  of  a  few.  Omnivorous  reading  is  no 
more  to  be  commended  than  omnivorous  eating,  except 
in  the  case  of  those  mental  prodigies  who  do  not  fall 
under  general  rules.  The  wise  student  will  choose  his 
field  or  fields  of  research,  and  aim  rather  to  explore  them 
thoroughly  than  to  skim  over  countless  parterres.  Ac- 
cepting contributions  to  his  garners  from  every  quarter, 
and,  as  far  as  possible,  interrogating  every  object  and 
every  incident,  he  will  still  hold  to  his  main  purpose,  and 
lay  out  his  strength  upon  what  he  has  adopted  as  his  life- 
work.     Nor  is  there  any  branch  of  learning  which  will 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  221 

not  furnish  ample  room  for  the  exertion  of  all  your  powers. 
It  is  the  grand  distinction  of  the  Temple  of  Truth,  that 
you  may  traverse  any  one  of  its  galleries  and  never  reach 
its  end :  they  all  stretch  off  into  the  infinite.  The  devotees 
of  the  sciences,  physical  and  metaphysical,  perceive  this, 
and  are  beguiled,  often,  into  the  error  of  investing  science 
with  the  attributes  which  belong  only  to  a  personal,  and 
infinitely  wise  and  great  Creator.  Taught  in  a  different 
school,  you  will  recognize  alike  in  the  phenomena  of 
nature  and  in  the  vast  complexities  and  onward  progress 
of  human  affairs,  the  manifestations  of  the  presence  and 
sovereignty  of  God,  the  source  and  centre,  the  sum  and 
end  of  all  truth.  Impressed  with  this  conviction,  it  will 
need  only  the  abiding  feeling — '  a  little  while,'  to  lend 
unity  and  energy  to  your  studies,  as  it  will  also  dispose 
you  to  bring  all  your  acquisitions  and  lay  them,  as  the 
Magi  did  their  gifts,  at  the  Saviour's  feet. 

If  this  train  of  thought  concern  rather  the  few  than 
the  many,  there  is  one  aspect  in  which  it  adapts  itself  to 
us  all.  Knowledge  of  every  kind  is  valuable.  But  the 
knowledge  of  God,  of  his  word,  and  his  redeeming  work, 
is  indispensable.  The  wide  diffusion  of  religious  knowl- 
edge generally,  is  one  of  the  honorable  distinctions  of  our 
times.'  But  has  not  the  current  lost  somewhat  in  depth  ? 
There  are  more  good  books,  and  more  who  read  them. 
But  has  there  been  a  corresponding  increase  of  acquaint- 
ance with  the  Scriptures  in  the  Church  ]  To  speak  of 
our  own  communion  only,  is  the  Bible  studied,  relatively, 
as  much  as  it  used  to  be  %  Are  there  as  many  Christians 
who  attain  to  an  intelligent  and  discriminating  percep- 
tion of  its  truth]  While  there  is  more  Christian  activity 
and  discussion  abroad,  is  there  as  much  Christian  know- 
ledge ? 


222  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

However  these  questions  may  be  answered,  there  is 
one  concession  we  must  all  make, — ice  hnow  too  little  of 
the  Bible.  Those  who  have  consciously  neglected  it,  and 
those  who  have  not  neglected  it,  will  unite  in  this  con- 
fession. There  can  be  no  one  here  who  would  not  like 
to  know  more  of  this  blessed  book  before  he  meets  face 
to  face  that  Saviour  who  is  its  only  theme.  The  season 
is  one  which  invites  to  a  freshened  ardor  in  the  prosecu- 
tion of  this  best  of  studies.  If  we  are  ever  to  enrich  our- 
selves from  this  treasury  of  sacred  truth,  we  must  be 
about  it.  The  penury  of  our  present  stores  may  well 
humble  us.  And  '  a  little  while '  only  is  left  us  in  which 
to  augment  them.  How  can  we  better  employ  the  brief 
space  that  may  remain  to  us  than  in  dedicating  a  consid- 
erable portion  of  it  to  the  diligent  and  prayerful  study 
of  the  Scriptures '?  Whatever  be  neglected,  let  us  aspire 
after  larger  views  of  the  perfections  and  government  of 
God,  of  the  Mediator  and  his  several  offices,  and  of  the 
gradual  unfolding  of  that  wondrous  scheme  of  mercy 
which,  stretching  from  eternity  to  eternity,  has  inscribed  on 
its  vast  roll  all  our  hopes  and  interests  as  individuals,  and 
the  destinies  of  the  entire  race.  Here  is  a  kind  of  knowl- 
edge, the  highest  and  best  of  all,  for  the  acquisition  of 
which  we  are  not  dependent  upon  costly  libraries.  AVe 
have  the  text-book,  the  Book  of  books,  in  our  hands. 
Under  the  illumination  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  the  humblest, 
alike  with  the  most  gifted,  may  gain  access  to  its  inex- 
haustible treasures,  and  make  them  their  own. 

"  'Tis  a  broad  land  of  wealtli  unknown, 
Where  springs  of  life  at*ise  ; 
Seeds  of  immortal  bliss  are  sown, 
And  hidden  glory  lies." 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  223 

111  apportioning  our  "little  while"  among  the  nume- 
rous objects  which  solicit  attention,  can  we  afford  to 
overlook  the  field  which  hides  the  'pearl  of  great  price]' 

We  simply  advance  a  step  further  in  the  same  direc- 
tion when  we  speak  of  that  inner  life  of  the  believer,  the 
nourishing  of  which  is  equally  imperative  and  difficult. 
There  are  those  to  whom  the  current  language  of  the 
Scriptures  and  of  Christian  people,  on  the  corruption  of 
the  heart,  seems  extravagant,  if  not  fanatical.  The  reason 
is  obvious.  It  is  a  subject  about  which  they  are  igno- 
rant. Intelligent  they  may  be,  skilful  in  resolving  ab- 
struse questions,  at  home  among  the  rocks,  the  forests, 
and  the  stars,  but  they  are  strangers  to  themselves.  They 
have  never  seen,  have  never  honestly  sought  to  see,  their 
own  hearts.  How  should  they  comprehend  the  depth 
and  force  of  their  evil  appetites  when  they  have  put  forth 
no  resolute  effort  to  subdue  them  \  The  Christian  knows 
better.  To  him  the  seventh  chapter  of  Romans  is  neither 
myth  nor  fable.  In  St.  Paul's  experience  he  recognizes 
his  own.  He  is  waging  the  same  war  with  the  'law  of 
sin'  in  his  members,  receiving  the  same  wounds,  cast 
down  by  the  same  reverses,  and  cheered  by  the  same 
triumphs.  The  heart  is  as  a  field  overspread  with 
noxious  plants  rooted  so  firmly  that  the  weeding  of  the 
ground  is  the  labor  of  a  life.  Not  only  so,  but  it  must 
not  be  intermitted.  In  ordinary  horticulture  it  is  a  need- 
ful, but  only  an  occasional,  task.  Here  the  tropical 
fertility  of  the  soil  leaves  the  gardener  no  respite  from 
labor.  The  clinging  roots  baffle  his  skill,  and  nothing 
is  more  common  than  to  find  the  pestilent  vine  which 
he  imagined  he  had  extirpated  suddenly  shooting  forth 
again  with  a  luxuriant  growth. 


224  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

This  conflict  pertains  to  the  entire  earthly  life  of  the 
believer.  How  urgent  it  is,  how  incessant,  how  painful, 
no  disciple  requires  to  be  told.  Essentially  it  is  the  re- 
moulding of  the  soul.  While  the  works  remain  the  same, 
without  any  organic  change,  they  have  all  to  be  reno- 
vated and  readjusted,  so  that  it  amounts  to  a  "making 
all  things  new."  This  process  may  have  been  com- 
menced with  us ;  but  how  incomplete  it  is  even  wliere  it 
has  advanced  the  farthest !  Who  of  us  could  bear  the 
thought  of  going  as  we  are  now  into  that  aAvful  presence 
where  angels  veil  their  faces  %  Something  more  we  hope 
to  do  before  that  hour  comes ;  something  more  we  feel 
that  we  must  do  in  the  way  of  crucifying  the  flesh  with 
its  affections  and  lusts,  and  putting  on  Christ.  In  striv- 
ing after  this  result,  it  cannot  foil  to  be  of  service  to  us 
to  keep  in  mind  the  thought — "a  little  while."  The 
student  at  his  task,  the  pilgrim  on  his  journey,  the  sailor 
descrying  his  haven,  the  soldier  on  his  march,  —  this 
thought  is  a  talisman  to  them  all.  Much  more  should 
it  nerve  the  spiritual  warrior  to  ever-increasing  con- 
stancy and  courage.  You  may  not  suspend  your  eff'orts. 
The  rest  you  long  for,  you  cannot  take.  Every  path  you 
tread  is  thickly  ambushed.  Your  own  bosom  is  full  of 
spies  and  traitors.  To  sleep,  or  loiter,  or  put  off  your 
armor,  or  hold  parley  with  the  enemy,  will  involve  you  in 
certain  loss.  But, then, 'the  time  is  short.'  The  conflict 
will  last  while  life  lasts,  but  that  can  be  at  most  for  only  '  a 
little  while.'  And,  however  subtle  and  trained  the  allied 
forces  against  you,  you  meet  them  with  the  consciousness 
of  a  strength  and  a  sagacity  immeasurably  superior  to 
their  own.  For  you  also  have  an  Ally.  He  is  One  who 
hath  his  way  in  the  whirlwind  and  in  the  storm,  and 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  225 

"the  clouds  are  the  dust  of  his  feet;"  who  is  "  mightier 
than  the  noise  of  many  waters ;  yea,  than  the  mighty 
waves  of  the  sea."  It  is  his  wisdom  and  his  strength 
you  wield.  And  his  word  is  pledged  to  you,  "No  one 
shall  pluck  them  out  of  my  hand."  It  were  base  to 
retire  from  such  a  conflict  when  you  hnoio  that  it  must 
end  in  'a  little  while,'  and  end  in  your  triumphant  and 
lasting  success. 

Animating  as  this  may  well  be  to  all  Christians,  there 
are  some  to  whom  it  must  come  with  the  balm  of  a  signal 
encouragement.  Perhaps  the  consideration  which  oftener 
than  any  other  makes  a  Christian  willing  to  die,  is  that 
upon  which  we  have  been  dwelling, — this  incessant,  ex- 
hausting fight  with  his  own  corruptions.  Thrice  com- 
forting must  this  '  little  while '  be  to  the  various  tribes  of 
tempted  and  desponding  disciples.  Among  them  are 
some  whose  physical  infirmities  give  a  sad  coloring  to 
their  spiritual  life ;  others  who  seem  to  be  the  special 
objects  of  Satanic  malignity ;  and  others  still  who,  from 
some  erroneous  teaching,  from  feeble  health,  from  ill- 
governed  aifections,  or  other  cause,  live,  as  it  were,  in  a 
haunted  house,  beset  Avith  visions  and  imaginings,  which 
supersede  the  materialism  of  earth  and  sense,  and  create 
an  unreal  world,  fearful  to  dwell  in,  and  impossible  to 
escape  from.  To  all  these  sufferers  the  text  brings  its 
words  of  solace.  Your  trials  no  one  can  disparage  who 
is  conversant  with  the  believer's  w^arfare.  They  must 
be  ranked  as  among  the  most  painful  allotments  which 
our  Heavenly  Father  permits  his  children  to  encounter. 
But  it  is  through  his  permission  they  come.  He  will 
limit  and  control  them.  In  his  own  good  time,  which 
must  needs  be  in  "a  little  while,"  He  will  bring  them 


226  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

to  an  end.  And  then,  ye  poor,  tempted,  wearied,  but 
still  obedient,  trusting,  souls,  will  He  '  reward  you 
double'  for  the  sorrows  of  the  way.  What  will  these 
concern  you  when  once  you  hear  that  joyful  salutation, 
"  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father  !" 

There  are  other  conflicts  which  require  this  solace. 
"With  a  certain  class  of  minds,  there  is  an  impatience  of 
our  present  condition — of  the  mystery  of  Providence, 
and  of  limits  imposed  upon  our  possible  knowledge  of  the 
unseen  and  the  spiritual,  which  involves  a  perpetual 
inward  struggle.  You  accept  the  written  word  as  of 
Divine  authority.  But  it  fails  to  explain  the  moral  chaos 
to  which  the  world  has  been  consigned  for  these  sixty 
centuries.  Wliy  did  the  All-wise  and  All-good  suffer 
the  bloom  of  Eden  to  be  so  suddenly  blighted  1  Why 
permit  the  fair  fabric  of  creation  which  He  had  just  pro- 
nounced '  Very  good,'  to  be  polluted  and  despoiled  by 
the  tempter]  W^hy  must  sin  and  death  be  allowed  to 
ravage  the  earth  for  all  these  ages  %  Why  does  the  black 
pall  of  paganism  still  rest  upon  hundreds  of  millions  of 
the  race]  Why  are  other  hundreds  of  millions  aban- 
doned to  the  sway  of  the  Man  of  Sin  and  the  False  Pro- 
phet \  W^hy  is  the  Church  itself  fissured  with  error  and 
paralyzed  with  selfishness  and  formalism'?  Why  that 
eternity  of  woe  which  awaits  the  unbelieving !  What 
and  how  intricate  are  the  bonds  which  unite  us  with 
other  races  of  beings  %  How  is  the  soul  to  subsist  when 
severed  from  the  body,  and  what  scenes  are  to  greet  the 
departing  spirit  immediately  after  death]  What  concep- 
tions are  we  to  form  of  heaven,  and  of  the  employments 
of  the  righteous  in  glory  ] 

Questions  like  these  are  ever  floating  before  your  minds. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  227 

At  times  they  roll  in  on  you  in  a  body  for  an  answer  with 
a  vehemence  which  menaces  your  moorings.  You  assail 
the  massive  wall  which  divides  between  the  material  and 
the  spiritual,  the  present  and  the  future,  as  a  bird  beats 
against  the  bars  of  its  cage, — and  to  as  little  purpose. 
The  wall  will  not  yield.  A  single  hand  only  can  raze 
it;  and  will  not  raze  it  for  you.  So  far  from  it,  you  are 
required  not  only  to  acquiesce  in  these  arrangements  as 
founded  upon  adequate  reasons,  but  to  believe  that  they 
are  meant  to  supply  the  very  training  you  yourselves 
need.  Herein  is  the  discipline  of  faith,  of  patience,  of 
humility,  of  filial  trust.  "Except  ye  become  as  little 
children,  ye  shall  not  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 
It  was  the  teaching  of  the  tempter,  "Ye  shall  be  as  gods." 
And  it  might  seem  as  if  the  fatal  promise  carried  the  tem- 
per with  it :  for  men  have  ever  since  borne  themselves 
"  as  gods."  The  true  God  will  not  endure  this.  Instead 
of  "gods,"  we  must  be  transformed  into  children,  yea, 
"  into  little  children" — guileless,  helpless,  loving,  trust- 
ful, obedient,  grateful.  A  tardy  process  it  is,  and  pain- 
ful, but  it  must  go  forward.  Our  comfort  is,  that  it  will 
be  temporary.  In  "  a  little  while"  you  will  be  discharged 
from  this  regimen,  so  trying  to  flesh  and  blood ;  and,  still 
more,  relieved  of  the  enigmas  and  perplexities  out  of 
which  it  springs.  The  curtain  idll  be  lifted.  The  laby- 
rinth you  have  been  traversing  all  your  lives,  will  end  in 
a  large  and  wealthy  place.  A  flood  of  light  will  pour 
itself  over  this  dimness  and  seeming  disorder  which  baffle 
our  highest  wisdom  and  ensnare  our  faith.  The  para- 
doxes of  time  will  become  the  intuitions  of  eternity,  and 
the  mysteries  of  earth,  the  hallelujahs  of  heaven. 

I  have  alluded  to  the  bearing  of  our  text  upon  the 


228  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

tcorl'  of  life.  The  topic,  while  all-important,  is  so  famil- 
iar that  we  rarely  get  any  just  impression  of  its  vast  sig- 
nificance. What  is  it,  the  work  of  life  ^  "  Man's  chief 
end  is  to  glorify  God  and  enjoy  Him  forever."  Is  it  not 
for  tJiis  He  made  us  and  placed  us  here,  that  we  might 
serve  and  honor  Him'?  Something,  possihly,  has  been 
done,  or  attempted,  in  that  way.  But  how  little  have 
they  done,  who  have  done  most !  And  as  to  the  greater 
part  of  us,  what  confusion  would  cover  us  should  we  be 
called  now  to  his  bar,  with  the  meagre  showing  we  might 
be  able  to  make  for  our  twenty,  forty,  or  fifty  years!  If 
reminded  that  we  have  only  "  a  little  while"  for  retriev- 
ing the  past — no,  that,  alas,  can  never  be  done,  but  for 
improving  the  future,  it  falls  upon  the  ear  like  an  '  old, 
old  story,'  and  we  heed  it  not.  But  we  should  heed  it. 
For  we  are  all  servants  and  stewards,  and  must  go  soon 
to  reckon  with  the  Master. 

"A  little  while"  longer  we  may  give  to  Him.  Strange 
that  the  Owner  and  Ruler  of  all  things,  should  want  our 
gifts.  But  He  does, — first  our  hearts,  then  our  time,  our 
talents,  our  property,  our  all.  To  speak  of  one  of  these, 
the  silver  and  the  gold,  already  his.  He  asks  that  it  be 
laid  at  his  feet  and  dedicated  to  the  well-being  of  the 
race.  Thousands  there  are  who  cheerfully  respond  to 
his  claim  ;  and  among  them,  not  a  few  upon  whom  He 
has  lavished  riches.  It  is  better  understood  than  it  once 
was,  that  wealth  has  as  well  its  responsibilities  and  duties 
as  its  privileges.  An  example  like  that  of  the  great  phi- 
lanthropist* whose  remains  a  Funeral-fleet  such  as  the 
world    scarcely  ever    saw    before  is   now  conveying   to 

*  George  Peabody. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  229 

our  shores,  must  continue  to  tell  with  power  upon  the 
Croesuses  and  Midases  of  the  world.  While  alone  in  the 
munificence  of  his  benefactions,  he  is  by  no  means  alone 
in  his  o-enerous  concern  for  the  welfare  of  his  kind.  There 
are  instances  of  a  kindred  liberality  in  all  our  cities,  and 
in  many  of  our  churches.  We  could  all  cite  individuals 
who  have  made  the  noblest  use  of  wealth,  by  devoting  it 
to  the  bodily  and  the  spiritual  wants  of  the  destitute.  A 
happy  facility  for  this  is  supplied  by  the  number  and  va- 
riety of  the  objects  which  now  invite  sympathy  and  aid. 
If  you  shall  ever,  through  the  infinite  mercy  of  God, 
stand  among  the  ransomed  above,  you  will  not  regret 
that  you  did  something  in  this  way  for  Him  who,  "  though 
rich,  for  our  sakes  became  poor,  that  we  through  his  pov- 
erty, might  be  made  rich."  Remember  his  saying : — "  In- 
asmuch as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these 
my  brethren,  ye  hcwe  done  it  imto  ?7?e."  And  do  not  for- 
get the  "little  while." 

We  are  none  of  us  satisfied  with  our  past  ivorJdng. 
Not  to  describe  specific  fields,  there  is  Christian  work 
needed  on  every  side.  And  in  every  Church  there  are 
precious  talents  hidden  in  the  earth,  which  the  owners 
would  do  well  to  bring  forth  into  use  before  the  Master 
comes  to  look  after  his  servants.  Very  cogent  are  the 
arguments  which  enforce  this  duty.  Let  it  sufiice  that 
in  "a  little  while"  it  will  be  too  late.  You  would  not 
like  to  see  your  Lord  approaching  just  yet.  You  would 
fain  help  forward  his  cause  in  the  world  a  little  more. 
Up,  then,  for  He  will  be  here  soon.  Go  work  to-day  in 
his  vineyard — and  ever?/  day.  Thus  would  He  choose  to 
find  you,  and  thus  would  you  choose  to  meet  Him. 
This  obligation,  also,  is  more  widely  felt  than  it  once  was. 


230  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

It  has  happened  here  in  our  own  Church,  that  wlien  an 
individual  was  received  into  our  communion,  his  very  first 
question,  before  retiring  from  the  presence  of  the  Session, 
was, — "  I  wish  to  go  to  work :  what  have  you  for  me  to 
doT'  And  he  went  to  work.  The  conviction  is  becoming 
general  tliat  a  Christian  profession  implies  service.  It  is 
not  every  one  who  can  render  it,  in  the  form  of  philan- 
thropic or  missionary  labor :  infirm  health,  domestic  ties, 
incessant  toil,  or  other  causes,  may  forbid.  But  active 
sympathy  in  the  furtherance  of  the  Gospel  is  the  law  of 
Christ's  household  ;  and  it  deeply  behooves  us  to  keep  in 
mind  the  "little  while." 

No  less  helpful  will  this  thought  be  to  the  toilers  of  the 
world.  Everywhere  the  masses  are  shut  up  to  a  hard 
life — a  life  of  incessant  work  with  few  comforts  and  many 
privations.  Most  benign  is  the  promise  of  the  Gospel  to 
the  poor  who  embrace  its  gracious  offers.  Your  cup  wall 
lose  its  bitterness  whenever  you  can  realize  that  a  Father's 
hand  holds  it  to  your  lips.  And  the  reflection — "  a  little 
while,"  will  reconcile  you  to  hardships,  which,  without 
some  prospect  of  relief,  might  prove  insupportable.  By 
and  by  your  appointed  task  will  be  finished,  and  you  will 
go  home  to  a  long  and  peaceful  rest,  made  twice  welcome 
by  the  exhausting  travail  of  the  way. 

And  thus  does  the  text  proffer  its  grateful  solace  to  the 
sick,  the  bereaved,  the  tempted,  the  impoverished,  and 
all  the  tribes  of  want  and  sorrow.  Let  it  inspire  you 
with  fresh  patience  and  courage  to  reflect  that  in  "a 
little  while"  your  trials  will  be  over — never  to  return. 

Nor  must  I  close  without  saying  that  while  there  is 
consolation  here,  there  is  admonition  as  well.  To  those 
who  have  '  neglected  the  great  salvation,'  there  is  a  preg- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  23 X 

nant  omen  in  the  sonnd, — "a  little  while."  Yes,  it  is,  it 
can  be,  but  a  short  time ;  yet  eternal  issues  hang-  upon 
it.  Can  you  afford  to  spend  another  year — which  may, 
peradventure,  prove  only  a  few  days  or  hours — without 
God  and  without  hope'? 

Such,  then,  beloved,  is  the  Scripture  I  come  this  morn- 
ing- to  tender  you,  as  your  text  for  the  New- Year.  May 
it  please  God  so  to  write  it  upon  our  hearts  and  imbue 
us  with  its  spirit,  that  we  may  accept  the  labors  and  re- 
laxations, the  successes  and  reverses,  the  joys  and  sor- 
rows, and  all  the  changes  of  this  year,  with  the  abiding, 
cheerful,  submissive,  filial  feeling — "A  little  while." 


1871 


XIII. 

''  THE  LOED  WILL  GIVE  GRACE  AND 
GLORY." 

PSALM  Lxxxiv.  11. 


This  is  a  text  which  cannot  fail  to  satisfy  you,  expect- 
ing as  you  are  this  morning  a  motto  for  the  year.  Very 
urgent  your  cravings  may  be,  very  large  your  demands, 
and  very  lofty  your  aspirations,  but  they  are  all  provided 
for  here.  When  you  utter  the  expression,  'grace  and 
glory,'  you  condense  into  the  briefest  formula  all  that 
earth  can  need,  and  all  that  heaven  can  give. 

Of  course  it  is  of  his  own  the  Most  High  speaks  when 
He  says,  "The  Lord  will  give  glory."  Promises  like  this 
pertain  to  the  dowry  of  the  saints ;  they  are  the  jewelry 
of  the  Lamb's  Bride,  and  no  profane  hands  may  appro- 
priate them. 

But  some  doubting  Thomas  may  ask,  "  How  am  I  to 
know  this]  What  assurance  have  I  that  He  will  'give 
grace  aiid  glory'  to  every  one  of  his  children'?"  The 
first  reply  is,  because  He  has  told  them  so.  "Hath 
He  said,  and  shall  He  not  do  it  1  Hath  He  spoken,  and 
shall  He  not  make  it  goodl"  The  second  is  in  the 
answer  He  made  to  the  Jirst  Thomas,  "  Reach  hither  thy 

16  (233) 


234  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

finger,  and  behold  my  hands ;  and  reach  hither  thy  hand, 
and  thrust  into  my  side ;  and  be  not  faithless,  but  believ- 
ing." What  mean  those  wounds'?  Why  did  the  Son 
of  God  become  the  Son  of  man,  and  die  a  malefactor's 
death  1  Was  it  to  make  a  partial  atonement  for  sin,  to 
purchase  for  his  people  a  precarious  pardon,  to  afford 
them  a  taste  of  the  Divine  mercy,  only  to  remit  them  to 
the  inexorable  custody  of  the  law,  with  its  retributive 
terrors  %  Rather  is  his  crucifixion  the  pledge  of  all  the 
blessings  they  can  require  in  time  or  in  eternity.  "  He 
that  spared  not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered  Him  up  for 
us  all,  how  shall  he  not  with  him  also  freely  give  us  all 
things '?"  To  question  this  is  to  distrust  a  bond  which 
is  sealed  with  the  blood  of  the  Only  Begotten. 

The  third  answer  is,  that  the  immutable  purpose  of 
God  has  so  bound  these  blessings  together  that  one  link 
of  the  chain  necessarily  draws  all  the  other  links  after  it. 
"Whom  he  did  predestinate,  them  he  also  called:  and 
whom  he  called,  them  he  also  justified :  and  whom  he 
justified,  them  he  also  glorified."  The  effectual  call  of 
the  believer  implies  his  election,  and  involves  his  pardon, 
sanctification,  and  eternal  glory. 

Let  these  three  grounds  suffice  to  rebuke  and  cancel 
your  misgivings.  It  is  beyond  controversy  that  "  the 
Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory,"  not  to  a  few  favored 
ones  among  his  children,  but  to  alb  alike,  as  well  to  the 
ignorant,  the  helpless,  and  the  unknown,  as  to  prophets, 
apostles,  and  martyrs.  Here,  again,  is  a  crevice,  through 
which  unbelief  creeps  in.  With  your  conscious  ill  desert 
you  cannot  imagine  that  He  should  regard  you  with  the 
interest  He  bestows  upon  those  of  your  fellow-men  whose 
gifts  greatly  excel  your  own,  and  whose  labors  are  more 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  235 

abundant.  If  you  are  not  making  a  faithful  iise  of  your 
own  advantages,  this  may  be  a  good  reason  for  humilia- 
tion. But  to  suppose  that  the  mere  possession  of  one 
talent  or  of  five  talents  can  affect  the  complacency  with 
which  God  regards  his  children  severally,  and  shut  or 
open  the  gateways  of  his  bounty  towards  them,  is  to  mis- 
take the  organic  law  of  the  Mediatorial  kingdom.  Do 
not  for  an  instant  harbor  the  thought  that  He  gives  or 
denies  us  the  blessings  of  the  new  covenant  upon  the 
basis  of  our  personal  endowments,  or  our  personal  merit 
or  demerit.  This  were  to  import  into  the  administration 
of  his  kingdom,  a  principle  subversive  of  all  grace,  and 
most  derogatory  to  the  Redeemer.  In  fact  what  room 
were  there,  on  this  principle,  for  our  text,  and  a  thousand 
other  precious  Scriptures  of  like  import"?  If  grace  and 
glory  are  the  exclusive  heritage  of  the  icorthy^  where  is 
the  sinner  or  the  saint  who  would  presume  to  come  for- 
ward and  claim  them  X  Small  progress  have  we  made 
even  in  the  alphabet  of  our  religion  if  we  have  yet  to 
learn  that  "Christ  is  all  and  in  all."  To  receive  Christ 
is  to  receive  all  the  benefits  of  his  mediation.  Not  par- 
don only,  nor  renewal  only,  but  all  the  graces  and  all 
the  privileges  of  the  new  covenant  are  conveyed  by  that 
one  imperial  grant  of  the  '  unspeakable  gift.'  He  is 
'  made  of  God  unto  us  wisdom  and  righteousness,  sanc- 
tification,  and  redemption.'  Believers  are  '  in  Christ.' 
They  are  members  of  his  body.  AVhen  the  Father  looks 
upon  them  He  sees  them  not  as  they  are  in  themselves, 
but  as  they  are  in  the  Son  of  his  love,  and  therefore 
alike  Ms  sons.  Their  life  is  hid  in  Christ's  hfe — the 
source  and  means  of  their  spiritual  nourishment,  the 
channel  of  all  sacred  influences  to  their  souls. 


236  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

This  being  the  case,  it  becomes  intelligible  to  us  how 
the  Sovereign  Father  can  put  all  his  people  on  the  same 
footing,  and  can  assure  each  one  among  them  of  '  grace 
and  glory.'  INot  for  their  sakes  is  it  done,  not  for  any 
work  or  merit  of  their  own ;  but  for  the  sake  of  Him 
who  died  for  their  offences,  and  rose  again  for  their  jus- 
tification. This  detracts  nothing  from  the  love  and  mercy 
of  their  redemption.  It  leaves  no  room  for  self-compla- 
cency. It  simply  illustrates  the  infinite  condescension 
and  merit  of  the  Saviour  in  expiating  the  sins  and  secur- 
ing the  ultimate  triumph  of  a  race  so  utterly  without 
strength  or  goodness  of  their  own. 

We  have  hinted  at  the  comprehensive  nature  of  this 
promise, '  grace  and  glory.'  Comprehensive  it  must  needs 
be,  or  it  would  not  suffice  for  us.  "  From  me  is  thy  fruit 
found."  "Without  me  ye  can  do  nothing."  "  In  me 
(that  is,  in  my  flesh)  dwelleth  no  good  thing."  "Not 
I,  but  the  grace  of  God  which  was  with  me."  There  is  no 
Christian  whose  heart  will  not  respond  a  ready  '  Amen ' 
to  utterances  like  these.  And  they  show  how  indispen- 
sably we  require  Divine  aid  every  day  and  hour  of  our 
lives. 

We  stand  at  the  threshold  of  a  new  year,  not  know- 
ing the  things  that  are  to  befall  us  before  its  close.  What 
we  need  just  here  is  grace  to  commit  ourselves  into  God's 
keeping  without  undue  solicitude  as  to  the  future.  Our 
text,  then,  comes  into  play  at  once.  For  nature  is  not 
wont  to  be  tranquil  in  the  presence  (may  I  so  speak  X)  of 
the  future.  It  is  to  us  what  the  dark  is  to  children ;  we 
people  it  with  untoward  shapes  and  grim  spectres.  Or, 
rushing  to  the  other  extreme,  like  children  anticipating 
the  holidays,  we  replenish  the  future  with  visions  of  un- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  237 

mixed  success  and  happiness.  The  lesson  of  Scripture  is 
not  that  we  frame  no  plans,  take  no  precautions,  indulge 
no  hopes  and  expectations  concerning  the  coming  days 
and  months,  but  that  we  do  all  this  with  a  filial,  con- 
fiding temper;  that  we  reverently  acknowledge  God's 
universal  providence ;  rely  upon  his  wisdom  and  faith- 
fulness, and  trustfully  leave  all  things  with  Him  who  is 
certain  to  do  all  things  well.  This  is  the  duty  of  to-day; 
and  for  this  our  promise  brings  its  unfailing  grace. 

While  we  cannot  turn  over  a  single  leaf  of  the  year's 
history  (it  requires  a  revolution  of  the  globe  on  its  axis 
to  do  that),  we  are  certain  of  one  thing.  So  long  as  life 
lasts,  every  day  will  bring  to  every  one  of  us  its  round  of 
familiar  experiences.  Great  events  are  exceptional  in 
the  greatest  lives.  The  world's  captains,  statesmen,  in- 
ventors, authors,  sages, — with  these,  no  less  than  with  the 
masses  of  mankind,  life  is  made  up  substantially  of  littles. 
It  is  a  routine  of  petty  duties,  ]3etty  trials,  temptations, 
successes,  interruptions,  pleasures.  If  you  keep  a  diary, 
how  large  a  proportion  of  the  pages,  if  candidly  in- 
scribed, would  read :  '  This  day  has  passed  like  yester- 
day.' One  photograph,  slightly  varied,  would  answer 
for  perhaps  five  days  out  of  six — that  is  for  most  people. 
Diversities  there  are ;  your  school  lessons  are  not  quite 
identical  through  the  week ;  you  have  some  trouble  with 
a  child  to-day  which  you  did  not  have  yesterday ;  your 
temper  has  given  way  rather  more  or  rather  less ;  you 
have  had  more  or  fewer  visitors ;  you  have  had  a  fresh 
customer  or  two ;  you  have  had  a  cold  or  a  headache,  or 
got  rid  of  one ; — in  some  such  tide  as  this  life  flows  on 
with  us  day  by  day.  When  we  consider  man's  origin 
and  destiny,  the  immortality  that  awaits  him,  the  possible 


238  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

indefinite  expansion  of  his  faculties,  and  his  endless  pro- 
gression in  knowledge,  it  does  seem  humiliating  that  he 
should  spend  the  major  part  of  the  years  allotted  him 
here  in  such  common-place  employments.  When  I  see 
a  woman  sitting  for  hours,  with  her  needle  in  hand, 
taking  one  small  stitch  after  another,  and  reflect  that 
she  is  probably  doing  this  day  by  day  for  months  to- 
gether, my  first  emotion  is  one  of  pity  for  the  patient 
toiler,  and  the  second  a  painful  sense  of  the  seeming 
incongruity  there  is  between  the  ethereal,  deathless  na- 
ture, and  an  occupation  like  that.  There  is  really  no 
more  reason  for  this  feeling  in  the  particular  case  spe- 
cified than  in  many  others  of  the  usual  domestic  or 
mechanical  occupations.  The  warp  and  woof  of  life  is 
largely  made  up  of  a  weaving  which  is  simply  a  little 
more  or  a  little  less  dignified  than  plying  a  needle  for 
use  or  pastime.  The  stern  rigor  of  our  lot  gives  none 
of  us  respite  from  the  clamorous  demands  for  food,  and 
drink,  and  repose.  Wealth,  and  rank,  and  power,  rather 
modify  the  shape  and  tone  of  these  requisitions  than 
annul  them.  We  are  all  toilers,  and  the  greater  part 
of  our  toil  is  expended  upon  very  common  matters. 

Now,  what  does  this  mean  1  And  what  use  are  we  to 
make  of  it  %  Is  it  of  chance  that  we  are  left  to  travel 
for  so  many  years  along  these  dead  levels  of  life  %  Is 
there  no  sisfnificance  but  that  which  meets  the  eve  in  the 
stitching,  and  the  washing,  and  the  hammering,  and  the 
studying,  and  the  nursing, — in  the  tame  routine  which 
marks  off  the  dial  between  every  sun-rising  and  sun-set- 
ting ?  Assuredly  it  might  have  been  otherwise  with  us. 
With  infinite  resources  at  his  command  our  Heavenly 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  239 

Father  could  not  have  been  shut  up  to  precisely  that 
type  of  economy  under  which  we  find  ourselves.  To 
concede  this  is  to  affirm  that  there  were  reasons,  wise  and 
good,  which  disposed  Him  to  prefer  this  plan  to  any 
other;  to  some  other,  for  example,  which  might  have 
relieved  at  least  his  ransomed  ones  from  a  portion  of  their 
common  tasks,  and  assigned  them  to  pursuits  more  con- 
sonant (as  we  view  things)  to  their  exalted  powers  and 
destiny.  If  there  be  any  mystery  here  this  thought  may 
help  to  resolve  it. 

God  would  prepare  his  children  for  heaven.  This 
preparation  includes  of  necessity  not  only  forgiveness, 
but  personal  meetness.  They  must  be  moulded  to  a 
certain  cliaracter.  Having  borne  the  image  of  the  earthly, 
they  must  bear  the  image  of  the  heavenly.  They  must 
be  made  holy,  or  they  cannot  dwell  with  a  holy  God. 
This  points  to  a  slow  and  tedious  discipline.  It  is  not  a 
creation,  but  a  growth.  The  leaven  infused  by  the  Divine 
Spirit  must  leaven  the  whole  mass.  The  understanding, 
the  affections,  the  will,  the  conscience,  all  require  to  be 
pervaded  by  it.  Every  faculty,  every  susceptibility, 
needs  to  be  released  from  the  bondage  of  sin,  and  brought 
into  harmony  with  the  word  and  will  of  God.  Such  a 
training  requires  time.  It  requires  an  indefinite  variety 
of  agencies  and  implements  suited  to  each  several  part 
of  the  character.  It  demands — may  we  not  say  X — that 
the  sort  of  atmosphere  which  surrounds  the  common 
walks  of  life  be  impregnated  with  a  new  vitality.  For 
here,  where  we  are  off  our  guard,  and  there  are  no  spec- 
tators to  chide  or  cheer,  the  natural  man  finds  his  oppor- 
tunity. The  beaten  paths  of  our  daily  toil  reject  the 
good  seed,  but  give  ready  shelter  and  warmth  to  the 


240  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

tares.  Selfishness,  and  discontent,  and  sloth,  and  mita- 
bility,  and  jealousy,  and  fretfulness,  thrive  here  as  in  a 
hotbed.  And  what  we  need  is  strength  to  counteract 
these  noxious  tendencies.  We  must  learn  to  regard  these 
arid  spaces  as  lying  within  the  Lord's  vineyard,  and,  it 
may  be,  as  the  very  part  He  has  given  us  to  cultivate. 
The  tillage  may  be  very  perplexing  and  exhausting,  but 
what  has  that  to  do  with  duty  %  No  friendly  voices  may 
encourage  you  in  your  toil,  but  be  sure  the  Great  Hus- 
bandman walks  unseen  along  every  one  of  those  paths 
day  by  day,  and,  if  faithful  to  your  task,  you  shall  not 
lack  his  commendation. 

And  just  here  it  is  our  text  comes  to  you  with  its 
timely  promise.  The  Master  well  knew,  in  appointing 
you  to  this  service,  that  you  could  not  fulfil  it  without 
his  aid.  And  so  He  pledges  you  his  help.  He  will 
infallibly  give  you  grace  to  honor  Him  in  your  common 
avocations.  He  can  and  will  enable  you  to  interweave 
with  the  texture  of  your  current  life  the  golden  threads 
of  patience,  and  content,  and  cheerfulness,  and  gratitude. 
He  will  make  you  to  feel  that  the  tamest  service  derives 
a  certain  dignity  from  the  bare  fact  that  He  has  laid  it 
upon  you.  Flesh  and  blood  might  murmur  if  you  could 
see  nothing  but  the  narrow  walls  and  meagre  furnishings 
of  your  room.  But  would  you  murmur  if  He  should 
come  to  you  every  morning  and  say,  with  his  gentle 
voice,  '  Go,  ply  your  needle  to-day ;  go,  drive  the  loom ; 
go,  wield  the  sledge  ;  go,  stand  at  the  counter ;  go,  teach 
the  young ;  go,  cast  up  figures  ;  go,  tread  the  dull  routine 
of  your  domestic  duties, — for  me  V  So  far  from  contemn- 
ing your  work,  or  halting  under  it,  you  would  bless  your 
Lord  for  the  privilege  of  doing  anytlmig  for  Him.     Your 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  241' 

mouth  would  be  filled  with  laughter,  and  your  tongue 
with  singing.  The  sterile  paths  under  your  feet  would 
turn  to  'living  green.'  And,  far  better  still,  your  inner 
life  would  gather  nourishment  from  these  homely  occu- 
pations, and  gradually  soar  into  a  closer  sympathy  with 
the  mind  of  Christ  and  the  fellowship  of  the  ransomed. 

Let  me,  then,  commend  the  text  to  you  as  a  promise 
of  needful  help  in  the  daily  walks  of  life.  Only  seek  his 
aid,  and  the  Lord  will  give  you  grace  which  shall  hal- 
low your  commonest  occupations,  and  turn  the  laundry, 
the  nursery,  the  refectory,  the  noisy  workshop,  the  crowded 
mill,  the  blazing  forge,  the  damp,  dark  mine,  into  a  school 
where  your  higher  nature  shall  triumph  over  sin  and 
self,  and  acquire  a  growing  meetness  for  the  City  of  the 
Great  King. 

I  have  lingered  upon  this  branch  of  my  subject  be- 
cause, as  familiar  ground,  it  is  of  pre-eminent  impor- 
tance ;  and,  again,  because,  in  its  relations  to  the  pulpit, 
it  is  not  '  familiar  ground.'  It  is  time  now  to  glance  in 
a  passing  way  at  some  of  the  other  treasures  embosomed 
in  our  Scripture. 

"  The  Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory."  We  may  carry 
the  analysis  of  this  word  '  grace '  very  far  without  ex- 
hausting its  meaning.  It  embraces,  among  other  things, 
a  promise  of  Divine  teaching  and  guidance.  Like  all 
our  former  years,  this  year  will  bring  us  new  proofs  of 
our  ignorance,  and  numerous  questions  which  will  baffle 
our  sagacity.  Difficulties  are  ever  emerging  out  of  the 
ordinary  course  of  events  which  confound  our  skill  and 
experience.  Indeed,  the  wisest  amongst  us  feel  that 
they  may  find  themselves  at  any  hour  of  any  day  face  to 
face  with  questions  they  know  not  how  to  deal  with. 


242  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

What  a  privilege  to  have  an  unfaihng  source  to  Avhich 
we  may  repair  for  illumination !  "  I  will  instruct  thee 
and  teach  thee  in  the  way  which  thou  shalt  go :  I  will 
guide  thee  with  mine  eye."  "  The  Lord  God  shall  guide 
thee  continually."  "Thou  shalt  guide  me  with  thy 
counsel,  and  afterward  receive  me  to  glory."  This  ap- 
plies as  well  to  the  investigation  of  truth  as  to  matters 
of  practice.  In  this  view  we  are  in  circumstances  to 
appreciate  its  value.  For,  in  the  midst  of  the  fervid  evan- 
gelism of  the  day,  while  Bible  societies  are  disseminating 
the  Scriptures  by  the  million,  and  missionary  societies 
are  sending  Christian  preachers  into  every  land,  two  giant 
forms  of  error  are  rearing  their  heads  at  the  opposite 
poles  of  Christendom.  One  is  the  hoary-headed  Papacy, 
crowned  and  cursed  with  the  blasphemous  dogma  of  per- 
sonal infallibility.  The  other  is  the  pretentious  and  ar- 
rogant image  of  scientific  Skepticism.  At  implacable 
enmity  with  each  other,  they  wage  a  common  war  upon 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  One  assumes  to  impose  upon  the 
consciences  of  men,  by  the  sheer  force  of  authority,  the 
most  profane  lies  as  celestial  truth.  The  other  scorn- 
fully brands  the  most  momentous  truths,  accredited  by 
the  authority  of  God  Himself,  as  lies.  Our  young  men 
are  entering  upon  life  at  a  period  of  general  Pyrrhonism. 
The  old  foundations  are  to  be  torn  up.  Nothing  is 
to  be  accepted  as  true  upon  evidence  which  has  sat- 
isfied the  ages.  The  most  elementary  theses,  even  to 
the  immateriality  of  the  soul,  and  the  being  of  a  God, 
are  cast  into  the  fiery  alembic  of  philosophic  unbelief, 
with  the  foregone  conclusion  that  they  are  to  be  pro- 
nounced unworthy  of  credence.  Superadd  to  this  the 
controversies  which  subsist,  as  they  always  have  sub- 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  243 

sisted,  within  the  Church  itself,  and  it  will  be  seen  how 
rare  a  blessing  we  have  in  the  promise  of  Divine  illu- 
mination. It  is  not  a  pretended  but  a  real,  infallible 
teacher,  who  has  engaged  to  direct  our  inquiries.  Alike 
to  the  young  and  the  aged,  to  the  wise  and  the  simple. 
He  proffers  his  gracious  aid.  There  is  no  disciple  per- 
plexed with  the  inquiry,  'What  is  truth  t'  or  embarrassed 
with  the  question,  'Whither  does  duty  call  me'?'  who  is 
not  warranted  to  ask  and  to  expect  the  unerring  counsel 
of  the  Great  Teacher.  For  this  is  sealed  to  him  in  the 
promise,  "  The  Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory." 

What  is  thus  affirmed  of  enlightening  and  guiding 
grace  is  no  less  true  of  the  grace  we  need  in  the  entire 
v'orh  of  our  sanctification.  AVe  are  called  unto  holiness. 
The  end  of  the  Christian  life  is  conformity  to  God.  To 
achieve  this,  is  at  once  the  most  important  and  the  most 
difficult  service  laid  upon  us.  Of  its  difficulty  we  re- 
quire no  other  proof  than  the  imperfect  sanctification  of 
believers  generally  ;  rather  let  me  say,  no  other  proof  than 
that  supplied  by  our  own  experience.  There  is  small 
occasion  to  go  abroad  and  inspect  the  poor  tillage  of  our 
neighbors'  vineyards.  Look  at  the  weeds  and  thorns 
which  deform  our  own.  Not  the  same  thorns  and  weeds 
in  all ;  but,  though  diverse  in  species,  they  are  one  in 
nature.  God  has  given  you  talents,  and  you  have  hidden 
them  in  the  earth ;  the  Church  derives  no  benefit  from 
them.  He  has  bestowed  property  upon  you,  but  you 
have  not  remembered  the  words  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  how 
He  said.  It  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive.  You 
are  punctual  in  your  attendance  upon  the  sanctuary,  but 
you  are  still  more  devoted  to  frivolous  amusements.  If 
you  give  your  money  freely  for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel, 


244  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

perhaps  your  Christianity  fails  to  brighten  your  o^\ti 
home.  You  are  zealous  in  mission  and  Sunday-school 
labors,  but  you  are  self-righteous  and  carping,  unreason- 
able in  your  demands,  and  harsh  in  your  judgments. 
These  are  simply  specimen  classes.  If  we  are  to  credit 
what  Christians  say  of  one  another,  the  Church  is  still 
the  abode  of  legions  of  perverse  tempers  and  evil  habits. 
It  is  only  here  and  there  that  a  disciple  appears  who 
illustrates  all  the  graces,  and  serves  to  show  by  contrast 
how  far  we,  most  of  us,  fall  short  of  what  we  profess  and 
ought  to  be. 

This  state  of  things,  at  once  so  humiliating  and  so 
instructive,  exhibits  in  the  strongest  light  the  greatness 
of  our  work,  and  the  hopelessness  of  accomplishing  it 
by  any  resources  of  our  own.  Instead  of  marvelling  at 
the  errors  and  defects  so  common  among  Christians,  a 
thoughtful  observer  may  deem  it  matter  of  surprise  and 
gratitude  that  religion  should  survive  at  all  from  age  to 
age.  There  is  ample  room  for  this  emotion,  if  we  ex- 
clude the  idea  of  a  constant  Divine  interposition.  Let 
me  explain. 

A  few  days  since  I  received  from  a  kind  friend  a  quarto 
volume,  entitled  Floicers  from  (lie  Upper  Alps.,  vnth 
Glimpses  of  their  Homes.  Very  beautiful  it  is  as  a  work 
of  art,  and  very  true  to  nature.  I  turned  over  the  leaves 
and  looked,  one  after  another,  at  these  delicate  plants, 
sending  up  their  slender  shafts,  and  unfolding  their  many 
tinted  petals  to  the  sunbeam,  or  spreading  their  rich 
tapestry  of  vines  over  the  barren  rock,  some  with  a  mere 
hand-breadth  of  soil,  laid  bare  by  an  avalanche,  into 
which  to  strike  their  roots,  and  all  of  them  shut  in  by 
everlasting   snows.      And  it   did  seem  wonderful   that 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  245 

flowers  could  bud  and  bloom  up  there  among  the  per- 
petual glaciers,  eight  and  nine  thousand  feet  above  the 
sea.  While  I  was  admiring  the  infinite  wisdom  and 
might  of  Him  who  had  endowed  them  with  the  subtle 
alchemy  which  can  extract  nutriment  from  the  frost-laden 
winds  of  that  region,  it  occurred  to  me  that  these 
flowers  are  apt  symbols  of  the  Christian  in  the  world. 
His  home  is  among  barren  rocks  and  ice-fields.  The 
atmosphere  he  breathes  is  surcharged  with  deadly  poi- 
sons. The  whole  structure  and  tendencies  of  things 
around  him  are  destructive  to  his  better  principles.  All 
the  currents  of  earthly  influence  he  encounters  bear  him 
away  from  God  and  heaven.  And  yet  he  is  not  over- 
whelmed. His  life  does  not  go  out.  In  many  instances 
it  grows  up  into  strength  and  vigor.  It  thrives  upon  the 
elements  organized  for  its  extinction.  With  a  chemistry 
not  surpassed  by  that  of  the  Alpine  flora,  it  extracts 
nourishment  from  an  air  laden  with  miasma,  and  trans- 
mutes the  very  storms  that  sweep  over  it  into  means  and 
appliances  of  healthful  growth.  Of  both  phenomena  w^e 
may  say,  "  This  also  cometh  forth  from  the  Lord  of  Hosts, 
which  is  wonderful  in  counsel  and  excellent  in  workinsr." 
No  other  solution  is  admissible.  We  may  exclaim  of  any 
one  who  has  lived  a  pious  and  useful  life,  'What  hath 
God  wrought !'     For  it  is  all  of  God. 

Here  lies  our  whole  encouragement, — that  He  should 
consent  to  keep  this  work  in  his  own  hands,  and  do  for 
us  what  we  could  never  do  for  ourselves.  The  urgency 
of  the  work  is  beyond  dispute.  There  is  nothing  of 
higher  moment  to  us  than  that  we  grow  in  grace.  If  the 
past  year  has  come  and  gone  without  seeing  us  advanced 
in  holiness,  with  the  old  tempers  and  habits  as  robust. 


246  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

and  the  new  life  as  feeble  as  ever,  then  sin  lictli  at  our 
door.  And  this  sin  will  gather  fresh  power  and  turpi- 
tude if  we  take  it  with  us,  unrepented  of,  into  tlie  en- 
gagements of  the  new  year.  Let  it  be  deeply  impressed 
upon  our  minds  to-day  that,  whatever  else  be  neglected, 
the  soul's  wants  must  be  cared  for ;  that  it  will  not  do  to 
trust  to  a  superficial,  a  one-sided,  or  a  periodical,  religion ; 
that  there  is  a  glaring  deficiency  in  any  style  of  piety 
which  illumines  the  head,  but  does  not  permeate  the 
heart ;  that  excites  the  imagination,  but  does  not  subju- 
gate the  will ;  that  influences  the  passions,  but  does  not 
inform  and  arouse  the  conscience ;  that  makes  its  pos- 
sessor punctilious  in  his  observance  of  sacraments,  but 
leaves  him  a  devotee  of  the  world ;  that  sends  him  out 
an  earnest  worker  in  the  broad  field  of  philanthropy,  but 
holds  him  a  miserable  bond-slave  to  unlovely  tempers. 
All  these  are  incongruities  which  need  to  be  guarded 
against.  We  constantly  admonish  the  unconverted  that 
they  simply  mock  God  and  deceive  themselves  by  sup- 
posing that  He  will  consent  to  strike  the  balance  between 
their  good  deeds  and  their  bad  ones,  and  so  render  the 
award  of  life  or  death.  As  little  warrant  is  there  for  a 
Christian  professor  to  offset  one  part  of  his  Christianity, 
in  which  he  imagines  himself  to  excel,  against  another 
part  in  which  he  is  grossly  deficient.  It  is  the  entire 
man  which  the  Master  claims,  tlie  unreserved  surrender 
of  all  the  powers  and  members,  the  loving  obedience  of 
the  heart  to  every  one  of  his  precepts,  the  gradual  as- 
similation of  the  whole  character  and  life  to  his  own 
image. 

To  this  work  God's  word  and  the  Holy  Spirit  are  ever 
inviting  us.     And  the  opening  year  clothes  the  invitation 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  247 

with  peculiar  solemnity  and  tenderness.  Futile  it  were 
to  go  about  it  in  our  own  strength ;  but  He  does  not  ask 
this,  nor  would  He  smile  on  it.  '  He  will  give  grace  and 
glory.'  If  we  have  not  been  dealing  in  exaggerated 
phrases,  it  is  no  common  measure  of  grace  we  shall  re- 
quire to  carry  us  over  the  obstructions  of  the  way.  But 
great  and  small  belong  to  our  vocabulary.  They  are 
nothing  to  God,  With  Him  all  things  are  possible. 
What  He  offers  to  you  now,  He  has  bestowed  upon  ten 
thousands  of  his  people.  He  has  over  and  over  renewed 
the  miracle  of  the  Alpine  flowers  before  your  eyes,  in  so 
strengthening,  sustaining,  and  maturing  some  disciple 
you  have  known  and  loved  that  his  character  has  been 
radiant  with  spiritual  beauty,  and  his  life  has  been  a 
benediction  to  many.  The  same  grace  is  tendered  to  you, 
as  ample  in  measure  and  as  free,  in  answer  to  prayer. 
Prove  Him  now,  if  it  be  not  so.  Dedicate  this  year  to 
Him.  Be  no  longer  content  with  your  crude  attain- 
ments. Resolve  upon  a  deeper  sounding  into  the  depths 
of  the  Divine  promises,  a  more  thorough  divorce  from 
tlie  world,  a  more  faithful  culture  of  all  the  graces  of 
the  Spirit,  a  more  consistent,  holy,  and  fruitful  life. 
This  is  within  the  reach  of  every  Christian  here.  It  will 
be  our  loss  and  sin  if  we  come  short  of  it,  for  He  will  not 
fail  in  his  part.     '  He  ivill  give  grace  and  glory.' 

Grace  for  still  other  uses  we  shall  need  in  the  course 
of  this  year.  If  for  nothing  else,  certainly  for  trials  and 
sorrows.  No  year  has  yet  passed  over  us  without  leaving 
in  some  households  here  a  record  chronicled  in  tears. 
It  were  a  fond  conceit  to  suppose  that  the  coming  twelve- 
month is  to  be  in  this  respect  unlike  all  that  have  pre- 
ceded it.     In  what  guise  trouble  is  to  come,  upon  whom 


248  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

it  is  to  fall,  how  soon,  and  with  what  concomitants, — all 
these  points  are  happily  concealed  from  us.  What  more 
deeply  concerns  us,  is,  that  for  every  form  of  trouble  the 
Divine  word  brings  its  consolation.  No  storm  ever  yet 
beat  upon  a  Christian's  head  for  which  there  was  not 
some  support  or  shelter  provided  in  the  immutable  cove- 
nant. The  grace  assured  to  God's  children  enables  them 
to  realize  that  their  losses  and  perplexities,  their  sick- 
nesses and  bereavements,  arc  appointed  by  a  Father's 
love.  This  confidence  changes  the  whole  aspect  of  the 
dispensation.  It  recruits  their  faith  and  hope.  It  brings 
them  to  the  mercy-seat.  It  unseals  to  them  the  promises. 
It  blunts  the  power  of  sense.  It  detaches  the  affections 
from  earth,  and  leads  them  upward  to  God.  It  replaces 
human  loves  in  the  breast  with  love  to  the  Saviour.  It 
not  only  inculcates,  but  inspires,  resignation.  It  sustains 
the  stricken  believer  in  passing  through  the  waters  and 
the  fire.  It  takes  away  the  sting  of  death,  and  dries  the 
mourner's  tears.  All  this,  and  more  than  this,  the  grace 
of  God  can  do  for  his  children, — the  grace  which  is 
pledged  to  you  in  the  precious  text  before  us.  Amidst 
the  uncertainties  of  the  year  now  dawning,  it  is  an  un- 
speakable comfort  to  know  that  no  trial  can  come  with- 
out his  permission,  and  none  for  which  He  has  not  al- 
ready provided  either  full  deliverance  or  an  adequate 
support. 

This  pertains  no  less  to  public  than  personal  calami- 
ties. The  signs  of  the  times  seem  to  prelude  a  year  of 
momentous  changes,  of  mighty  convulsions,  that  are  to 
shake  continents  to  their  centre,  and  deluge  them  with 
blood.  There  is  much  in  the  condition  of  Christendom 
to  try  the  faith  of  intelligent  and  devout  believers,  and 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  249 

the  prospect  is  that  their  faith  will  be  cast  into  a  still 
more  fiery  crucible  before  the  year  closes.  But,  for  these 
troubles,  as  well  as  for  their  private  afflictions,  the  promise 
brings  plenary  strength,  and  patience,  and  comfort : — 
"  The  Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory." 

"  Let  mountains  from  their  seats  be  hurled 
Down  to  tlie  deep,  and  buried  there, 
Convulsions  shake  the  solid  world, 
Our  faith  shall  never  yield  to  fear." 

"  Grace  and  gJory  /"  The  treasures  bound  up  in  the 
first  of  these  words  have  engrossed  our  thoughts.  We 
have  taken  only  a  step  or  two  in  exploring  the  riches 
garnered  up  in  this  word,  which  is  itself  a  mere  vesti- 
bule to  the  other.  The  two  are  indissolubly  united. 
The  grant  which  makes  over  grace  to  the  believer  car- 
ries glorg  in  its  bosom  also.  The  pledge  of  present  grace 
is  the  earnest  of  future  glory,  and  this  not  by  arbi- 
trary decree  but  because  glory  is  as  es.sentially  enfolded 
in  grace  as  the  flower  is  in  the  seed,  and  the  oak  in  the 
acorn. 

How  this  expands  our  year-text !  How  it  enlarges 
your  heritage !  How  it  floods  those  common  walks  of 
life  of  which  we  were  speaking  with  tlie  splendors  of  the 
empyrean  !  How  it  dignifies  every  service  that  bears  the 
sacred  name  of  duty !  How  it  dwarfs  the  trials  of  life, 
and  solaces  its  griefs,  and  turns  its  lamentations  into 
hosannas  !  All  that  it  means,  nor  man,  nor  angel  knows. 
What  we  do  know  of  it,  I  shall  not  attempt  to  set  forth. 
Enough  that  your  charter  includes  whatever  of  purity 
and  peace,  of  dignity  and  honor,  of  perfect  rest  and  ever- 
lasting felicity,  may  be  intended  by  that  fathomless  word, 

17 


250  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

'glory.'  Ponder  it,  Christian  brethren,  on  this  New 
Year's  morning.  Take  it  into  your  heart  of  hearts; 
cherish  it  as  a  sacred  talisman  wherever  you  go ;  keep  it 
in  mind  as  you  launch  forth  upon  this  untraversed  sea, 
that  whatever  its  shoals  and  reefs,  its  storms  and  wrecks, 
'grace  and  glory'  await  you.  In  every  emergency,  in 
the  presence  of  temptation,  imder  the  burden  of  your 
daily  toil,  on  a  bed  of  sickness,  when  smitten  with  a  great 
sorrow,  when  training  for  some  arduous  service,  in  com- 
bating corruption  within  or  iniquity  without,  in  your 
prosperous  ease,  in  your  hours  of  despondency,  recall  the 
priceless  promise,  "The  Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory." 
Peradventure,  you  may  need  its  help — some  of  us  inevi- 
tably will — in  a  yet  more  solemn  conjunctiu'e.  There  are 
many  vacant  seats  at  your  boards,  and  in  these  pews,  which 
were  filled  on  the  last  New  Year's  Sabbath.  The  Scrip- 
ture then  proposed  to  you,  "J.  little  v:liilei^''  proved  a 
prophetic  utterance  to  not  a  few  whom  we  tenderly  loved, 
and  would  fain  have  kept  with  us.  Can  we  doubt  that 
this  experience  will  repeat  itself  during  the  present  year  ] 
Our  loved  ones,  departed  in  the  faith  and  hope  of  the 
Gospel,  now  comprehend,  as  it  is  not  possible  for  us  to 
do,  the  deep,  hidden  meaning  of  our  New  Year  text, 
'grace  and  glory.'  They  know  more  of  'grace'  than 
the  most  mature  believer  who  is  still  in  the  flesh ;  first,, 
because  they  have  received  not  only  living  grace  but 
dying  grace  ;  and,  secondly,  because  the  boundless  grace 
of  redemption  can  never  be  appreciated  until  the  august 
scheme  is  contemplated  from  heaven.  And,  then,  we 
know  notliincj  of  'glory;'  whereas  they  are  robed  with 
all  its  splendors,  and  filled  with  all  its  blessedness.  This 
is  alike  for  the  encouragement  of  the  pilgrims  whose  feet 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  251 

may  be  soon  pressing  the  margin  of  Jordan,  and  for  the 
comfort  of  those  whose  friends  have  crossed  the  stream. 

Of  some  who  have  within  the  last  few  months  passed 
from  grace  into  glory  I  would  gladly  speak,  would  time 
and  strength  permit.  But  I  must  content  myself  with 
the  expression  of  a  pastor's  sincerest  sympathy  with  your 
afflictions,  and  with  the  hope  and  prayer  that  to  you,  and 
to  all  my  people,  there  may  come  the  utmost  fulness  of 
blessing  which  can  be  bound  up  in  our  grateful  benedic- 
tion, A  HAPPY  New  Year  ! 

In  thus  passing  by  our  ow^n  sorrows,  I  shall  have  your 
indulgence  for  a  word  respecting  that  recent  dispensation 
which  has  cast  its  shadows  upon  all  our  churches,  upon 
our  whole  land,  almost  upon  the  Christian  world.  "  There 
is  a  prince  and  a  great  man  fallen  in  Israel !"  Our  city 
has  paused  in  the  midst  of  the  festivities  of  the  season 
to  gather  around  his  bier.  Eloquent  eulogy,  more  just 
than  eulogy  is  wont  to  be,  has  commemorated  his 
rare  gifts,  and  still  rarer  graces.  Devout  men  have  car- 
ried him  to  hissburiai,  and  made  great  lamentation  over 
him ;  and  the  tears  of  two  generations  bedew  his  grave. 
I  will  not  repeat,  though  I  heartily  endorse,  the  emphatic 
tributes  paid  to  his  various  learning,  his  intellectual 
power,  his  prodigious  industry,  his  quiet,  unassuming 
carriage,  his  consistent  example,  and  his  laborious,  bene- 
ficent, and  useful  life.  These  and  their  kindred  traits 
have  been  fitly  lauded.  But  I  cannot  forbear  expressing 
the  sense  of  personal  bereavement  I  feel  in  the  death  of 
Mr.  Barnes.  While  differing  widely  in  some  of  our 
theological  views,  this  was  no  bar  to  our  friendship.  I 
gave  him  my  cordial  esteem,  my  veneration,  my  love. 
And  he  left  me  no  room  to  doubt  that  he  reciprocated 


252  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

the  afFcction  I  bore  him.  It  was  always  a  pleasure  to 
nie  to  meet  him.  Whenever  we  were  thrown  together, 
we  were  sure  to  have  refreshing  converse  upon  topics  of 
private  interest  or  public  importance ;  and  there  were 
grave  questions  touching  the  economics  of  the  Church, 
upon  which  our  sentiments  coalesced,  in  opposition  to 
opinions  current  among  younger  men  of  all  '  schools.' 
In  parting  with  him  on  these  occasions,  it  was  uniformly 
with  a  deepened  impression  of  his  sincerity,  his  purity, 
his  conscientiousness,  and  his  supreme  devotion  to  the 
work  God  had  given  him  to  do.  A  presence  like  his 
was  a  perpetual  benediction  to  his  brethren.  The  with- 
drawal of  it  creates  a  void  in  the  ranks  of  the  Christian 
ministry  of  our  city  which  no  survivor  can  fill.  Let  us 
bless  God  for  the  '  grace '  which  shone  so  conspicuously 
in  his  character  and  life,  and  for  the  'glory'  into  which 
he  was  so  suddenly  translated.  Help  us,  O  Lord,  to  '  fol- 
low them  who,  through  faith  and  patience,  liave  inherited 
the  promises;'  and  'make  us  to  be  numbered  with  thy 
saints  in  glory  everlasting  !' 


1872. 


XIV. 
''WHOSE  I  AM,  AND  WHOM  I  SERVE." 

•   ACTS  XXVII.  23. 


Very  remarkable  language  this  is,  whether  we  con- 
sider the  person  who  uttered  it,  or  the  circumstances  in 
which  he  was  placed  at  the  time.  You  will  readily  recall 
that  memorable  voyage  of  the  great  Apostle  of  the  Gen- 
tiles, on  his  way  as  a  prisoner  to  Rome,  when  the  frail 
bark,  with  its  large  freight  of  human  beings,  encoun- 
tered a  hurricane  of  two  weeks'  duration,  and  the  whole 
company  were  expecting  certain  death.  In  the  midst  of 
this  turmoil,  while  the  winds  and  waves  were  hurrying 
them  on,  as  they  believed,  to  inevitable  destruction,  for 
"  all  hope  (so  we  read)  that  we  should  be  saved  was  then 
taken  away," — at  this  critical  conjuncture,  Paul  stood 
forth  before  the  "  two  hundred  threescore  and  sixteen 
souls,"  his  fellow-voyagers,  and  addressed  to  them  these 
calm,  assuring  words : — "  Sirs,  ye  should  have  hearkened 
unto  me,  and  not  have  loosed  from  Crete,  and  to  have 
gained  this  harm  and  loss.  And  now  I  exhort  you  to 
be  of  good  cheer  :  for  there  shall  be  no  loss  of  any  man's 
life  among  you,  but  ol'  the  ship.  For  there  stood  by  me 
this  night  the  angel  of  God,  whose  I  am,  and  ivhom  I 

(253) 


254  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

serve^  saying,  Fear  not,  Paul;  tliou  must  be  brouglit  be- 
fore Ca?sar:  and  lo,  God  liath  given  thee  all  them  that 
sail  with  thee.  Wherefore,  sirs,  be  of  good  cheer :  for 
I  believe  God,  that  it  shall  be  even  as  it  were  told  me. 
Howbeit  we  must  be  cast  upon  a  certain  island."  Brave 
words  these  in  the  face  of  such  a  tornado!  And  how 
literally  they  were  verified  by  the  result,  you  Avell  know. 
Many  topics  they  suggest  upon  which  we  cannot  now 
dwell.  ]jet  it  simply  be  noted,  in  passing,  that  this  Avliole 
ship's  company  were  saved  for  the  sake  of  one  Christian 
man.  "  So  God  hath  given  thee  all  them  that  sail  with 
thee."  If  the  irreligious  knew  how  many  blessings,  tem- 
poral no  less  than  spiritual,  come  to  them  purely  for  the 
sake  of  Christian  relatives  or  friends,  it  might  do  some- 
thing to  conciliate  their  kindly  regards  tow^ards  that 
Gospel  they  contemn.  Possibly  there  may  be  those  here 
whose  life  has  been  prolonged  for  another  year,  chiefly 
for  the  sake  of  some  pious  wife,  or  parent,  or  child,  with 
whose  faith  they  have  not  the  slightest  sympathy. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  text  as  a  remarkable  utterance ; — 
remarkable,  very,  if  we  assume  a  latent  reference  to  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  This  we  seem  warranted  in  doing, 
because  Paul  repeatedly  styles  himself  "a  servant  of 
Jesus  Christ,"  and  is  followed  herein  by  his  fellow- Apos- 
tles, Peter  and  Jude.  Reverting  to  his  early  history,  it 
reveals  the  thorough  transformation  which  had  passed 
over  him  that  he  should  use  language  of  this  sort.  There 
w^as  a  period  when  hatred  of  Jesus  Christ  was  the  con- 
trolling passion  of  his  nature, — a  hatred  all  the  more 
intense  and  malevolent  because  nursed  as  a  religious 
sentiment,  and  sanctified  by  the  vigils  and  prayers  of  the 
strictest  of  devotees.     Now,   not  merely  is  his  hatred 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  255 

turned  to  love,  but  lie  exults  in  bearing  to  that  same 
Jesus  the  relation  of  a  bondman.  In  the  passage  before 
us — 'whom  I  serve,'  the  precise  meaning  of  the  verb 
is  to  serve  in  the  way  of  worship,  the  highest  form  of 
service,  and  involving  every  other  type.  But  elsewhere 
he  uses  the  word  hovXog.  He  even  puts  it,  in  his  opening 
salutation  to  the  Roman  Church,  as  the  most  honorable 
of  titles,  and  meet  to  be  associated  with  the  high  office 
of  Apostleship  : — "  Paul,  a  hov^^og,  a  bondman,  a  slave  of 
Jesus  Christ,  called  to  be  an  Apostle,  ....  to  all  that 
be  in  Rome."  In  this  view,  the  two  phrases  in  the  text, 
"Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve,"  are  explanatory  of 
each  other.  "  I  belong  to  Christ ;  his  ownership  in  me 
is  as  complete  as  that  of  a  Roman  master  in  his  slave." 
Nothing  could  go  beyond  this.  And  his  whole  life  at- 
tested how  truly  he  felt  it,  and  how  heartily  he  gloried 
in  it. 

While  there  were  many  things  in  St.  Paul's  character 
and  history  peculiar  to  himself,  there  was  very  much  in 
his  experience  that  he  shared  with  the  faithful  of  all 
lands  and  generations.  Every  true  disciple  sustains 
the  same  relation  to  Jesus  Christ  that  he  did.  Every  one 
professes  what  Paul  avows  here, — "  Whose  I  am,  and  whom 
I  serve."  We  have  all  appropriated  this  language,  my 
brethren.  We  virtually  make  it  our  own,  not  only  so 
often  as  we  sit  down  at  the  Lord's  table,  but  in  every 
prayer  we  offer,  and  every  psalm  of  praise  we  sing.  It 
cannot  be  amiss,  then,  to  inquire  what  these  words  mean, 
and  how  far  it  may  be  helpful  to  carry  them  with  us  into 
the  scenes  of  the  opening  year. 

"Whose  I  am."     Here  is  an  acknowledgment  on  the 


256  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

part  of  the  believer  of  God's  absolute  property  or  owner- 
ship in  him.      Whence  does  it  originate  ? 

Manifestly,  believers  belong  to  God  by  the  right  of 
creation.  He  who  made  us,  owns  us.  No  right  can  be 
more  unqualified  or  indefeasible  than  this.  But  as  it 
applies  to  all  men  not  only,  but  to  all  creatures,  animate 
and  inanimate,  material  and  spiritual,  it  would  not  be 
pertinent  to  press  it  in  this  connection. 

In  the  second  place,  believers  belong  to  Christ,  because 
tlieij  icere  given  Him  hy  the  Father  in  the  covenant  of 
grace. 

In  no  obscure  terms  do  the  Scriptures  instruct  us  of 
this  sublime  transaction  between  the  Father  and  the  Son. 
Foreseeing  the  apostacy  of  our  first  parents,  and  the  con- 
sequent ruin  of  their  posterity,  it  pleased  God  from  eter- 
nity to  ordain  that  certain  of  our  race  should  be  restored 
to  his  favor  and  image.  Those  whom  He  thus  set  his 
love  upon  He  gave  to  his  only  begotten  Son,  who,  on  his 
part,  engaged  to  become  their  surety  and  ransom.  "Ac- 
cording as  he  hath  chosen  us  in  him  (Christ)  before  the 
foundation  of  the  world."  "Who  hath  saved  us  and 
called  us  with  an  holy  calling,  not  according  to  our 
works,  but  according  to  his  own  purpose  and  grace,  which 
was  given  us  in  Christ  Jesus  before  the  world  began." 
"  I  pray  not  for  the  world,  but  for  them  which  thou  hast 
given  me  ;  for  thev  are  thine."  In  terms  like  these  does 
the  inspired  word  refer  to  the  sovereign  and  gracious 
purpose  of  God  in  determining  to  rescue  a  portion  of 
mankind  from  the  sway  of  his  and  their  great  enemy. 
As  all  were  alike  guilty,  miserable,  and  helpless,  so,  left 
to  themselves,  all  must  have  remained  in  that  state  per- 
petually.    His  right  to  bestow  certain  of  them — all,  had 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  257 

He  so  chosen — upon  the  Son  of  his  love,  was  perfect. 
The  right  of  the  Son  to  accept  the  gift  upon  the  condi- 
tions of  the  covenant  of  grace,  was  no  less  perfect.  And 
by  the  same  token  is  his  ownership  in  all  true  Christians 
established  upon  an  immutable  foundation. 

Another  of  the  pillars  upon  which  this  claim  rests  is 
redemptio7i.  Of  this  august  theme,  which  lights  up  the 
sacred  records  from  Genesis  to  Eevelation,  it  must  suffice 
to  say,  that  the  Son  of  God  fulfilled  to  the  letter  the 
stipulations  of  that  covenant  of  which  we  have  just 
spoken.  Very  affecting  it  is  to  reflect  how  much  was 
to  be  done — aye,  and  how  much  to  be  suffered — before  a 
single  sinner  of  our  race  could  be  brought  into  a  situa- 
tion in  which  he  might  lift  his  eyes  heavenward  and  say, 
"Whose  I  am!"  Infinite  love  was  on  the  throne,  and 
infinite  wisdom,  and  infinite  power.  But,  without  an 
expiation,  not  all  the  infinites  combined  could  avail 
to  roll  back  the  curse  which  had  overwhelmed  man. 
Bethlehem  was  a  stern  necessity;  Gethsemane  was  a 
necessity ;  Calvary  was  a  necessity.  The  Only-begotten, 
dwelling  in  the  glory  which  He  had  with  the  Father 
before  the  world  was,  knew  it  all ;  yet  did  He  freely  offer 
himself  as  our  ransom  ;  and,  when  the  fulness  of  the  time 
was  come,  He  as  freely  assumed  our  nature,  and  bore  our 
sins  in  his  own  body  on  the  tree.  Thus  was  the  eternal 
compact  crowned  and  sealed  wdth  his  own  blood.  "  Christ 
hath  redeemed  us  from  the  curse  of  the  law,  being  made 
a  curse  for  us."  Henceforth  his  people  are  doubly  his  ; 
his  by  the  Father's  gift,  and  his  by  the  efficacy  of  his 
atoning  death.  The  spotless  righteousness  thus  wrought 
out  by  Him  as  their  substitute  is  made  theirs.  There 
can,  therefore,  be  'no  condemnation'  to  them,  for  they 


258  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

are  'in  Christ  Jesus.'  Liberated  from  the  old  bondage, 
and  engrafted  into  Christ,  they  belong  to  Him  as  really 
as  the  branch  belongs  to  the  vine.  Well  may  they 
say,  "Whose  I  am,"  for  their  very  life,  their  icliole  life, 
is  derived  from  Him ! 

Yet  it  is  not  derived  from  Christ  without  the  interven- 
tion of  an  agent,  who  shares  with  Him  the  work  of 
man's  recovery.  The  believer  belongs  to  Christ  by  reason 
of  the  radical  change  Avr ought  in  his  character  by  the 
Divine  Spirit.  What  we  are  by  nature,  was  symbolized 
by  that  valley  of  dry  bones  seen  in  vision  by  the  prophet. 
What  the  redeemed  become  by  grace,  is  shown  by  that 
white-robed  company  around  the  throne.  The  moral 
distance  lying  between  these  extremes  is  something  im- 
mense. Never  could  it  have  been  traversed,  never  could 
the  first  step  of  the  way  have  been  taken  by  a  single 
sinner  of  Adam's  race,  but  for  the  mission  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  our  world.  Even  the  cross  of  Christ — that  spec- 
tacle which  concentrates  upon  itself  the  rapt  gaze  of 
all  the  angelic  hosts — must  have  been  set  up  in  vain. 
Men  would  have  passed  and  re-passed  it,  age  after  age, 
with  as  little  of  relenting  or  sympathy  as  was  exhibited 
by  the  callous  throng  who  poured  that  day  out  of  the 
gates  of  Jerusalem  to  witness  the  crucifixion.  The 
blessed  Spirit  came  to  rescue  man  from  himself,  to  open 
his  eyes,  to  unseal  his  ears,  to  subjugate  his  will,  and  to 
lead  him  a  willing,  grateful  penitent,  to  the  Saviour. 
Not  reluctantly  now,  but  joyfully,  does  he  bend  his  neck 
to  receive  the  yoke  of  Christ.  And  henceforth  it  be- 
comes the  guiding  maxim  of  his  life, — "Whose  1  am." 

This  is  anticipating  the  only  remaining  consideration 
I  shall   adduce  to  show  the  absolute  ownership  which 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  259 

Christ  lias  in  his  people,  viz.,  their  voluntary  choice  of 
Him  as  their  Master,  and  their  covenant  engagement  to 
know  no  other  Lord. 

I  say,  their  voluntary  choice,  for  no  act  of  their  lives 
can  be  more  so.  Through  the  secret,  silent,  and  irre- 
sistible influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  their  enmity  is 
turned  to  love.  Up  to  this  period  they  could  not  hear 
the  voice  of  Christ ;  now  all  the  tumult  of  earth  cannot 
drown  it.  They  would  not  come  to  Him  that  they  might 
have  life ;  now  they  cannot  stay  away  from  Him.  It  is 
in  their  eyes  a  proof  of  his  boundless  love  and  pity  that 
He  should  be  willing  to  receive  them,  that  He  should 
consent  to  give  them  a  place  among  those  happy  '■hond- 
men''  of  his,  whose  bondage  is  perfect  freedom.  And, 
approaching  Him  in  this  temper,  their  grateful  song  goes 
up  before  Him  : — 

"  Thy  grace  so  costly,  yet  so  free, 
My  hope  and  song  shall  ever  be, 

Till,  in  thy  courts  above, 
In  loftier,  sweeter  notes  I'll  sing 
The  praises  of  my  Saviour  King, 
And  his  redeeming  love." 

Such  is  our  answer  to  the  question,  'What  are  the 
elements  which  constitute  this  intimate  relationship  be- 
tween Christ  and  the  believer,  in  virtue  of  which  every 
Christian  can  say, and  does  say,  "Whose  I  am"?"  There 
is,  first,  the  eternal  decree  of  the  Father ;  next,  the  ran- 
som paid  by  the  Son  ;  then,  the  renewing  work  of  the 
Divine  Spirit;  and,  to  crown  all,  the  hearty,  thankful 
consent  of  the  believing  sinner.  Here  is  a  fourfold  bond — 
a  bond  so  strong  that  nothing  in  earth,  or  heaven,  or 


2G0  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

hell,  can  ever  sunder  it.  It  makes  the  ownership  of  Christ 
in  his  people  so  absolute  that  nothing  could  make  it 
more  so.  They  are  his  body  and  soul.  Whatever  they 
own  He  owns.  Their  property  is  his.  Their  gifts  and 
accomplishments  are  his.  He  owns  their-  homes  and 
their  business.  He  owns  their  health,  their  time,  their 
influence,  and  their  all.  He  so  owns  them  and  theirs 
that  He  can  dispose  of  them  as  He  may  choose.  Subject 
only  to  the  restrictions  imposed  by  his  own  rectitude.  He 
may  assign  them  to  any  sphere,  appoint  them  to  any  ser- 
vice, visit  them  with  any  trials,  exact  of  them  any  sacri- 
fice. He  sees  fit.  His  own  most  holy  will  is  the  only  rule 
by  which  He  is  bound  in  his  dealings  with  them.  And 
they  would  not  have  it  otherwise.  It  was  with  this  clear 
imderstandhig  they  consented  to  the  compact.  And  their 
ready  response  to  his  every  demand  is,  "  Whose  I  am, 
and  whom  I  serve." 

What  this  service  involves,  is  implied  in  the  remarks 
already  made.  But  we  must  consider  the  question  more 
minutely  if  we  are  to  carry  the  text  with  us  into  the 
scenes  of  the  coming  year.  Three  things  it  compre- 
hends, to  wit : — 

Faith  in  all  Christ's  teachings. 

Obedience  to  all  his  commands. 

And  submission  to  all  his  allotments. 

1.  Faith  in  all  Christ'' s  teachings.  It  pertains  to  tlie 
relation  in  which  Ave  stand  to  Christ,  that  we  recognize 
Him  as  our  prime  instructor,  and  accept  his  lessons 
with  an  implicit  faith.  This  imports  a  careful  study  of 
his  word,  that  we  may  learn  what  He  has  caused  to  be 
written  for  our  benefit.  That  the  word  should  contain 
'  some  things  hard  to  be  understood,'  is  a  matter  of  course. 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  261 

When  we  consider  that  the  sacred  books  were  penned 
by  numerous  authors,  dispersed  over  a  period  of  sixteen 
centuries ;  that  they  treat  of  a  vast  variety  of  topics  per- 
taining to  different  countries  and  peoples ;  and,  especially, 
that  they  discourse  of  the  loftiest  themes  upon  which  the 
minds  of  men  or  angels  could  be  employed,  it  were  a 
greater  marvel  than  any  they  now  present  to  us,  if  they 
had  not  embraced  "  things  hard  to  be  understood." 

Nor  is  it  strange  that  thoughtful  and  conscientious 
readers  should  sometimes  hesitate  and  doubt  over  these 
recondite  revelations.  This  need  not  impeach  their  fidel- 
ity to  the  Master,  provided  they  have  an  honest  desire  to 
learn  what  He  teaches,  and  are  using  the  proper  means 
to  that  end.  To  reject  a  doctrine  simply  because  it  is 
'  too  high '  for  their  narrow  comprehension,  or  because  it 
does  not  seem  to  them  to  be  '  reasonable,'  would  be  quite 
incompatible  with  the  allegiance  they  owe  Him.  If  it 
be  out  of  'a  true  heart'  you  say,  "Whose  I  am,  and 
whom  I  serve,"  you  will  search  the  Scriptures  as  for  hid 
treasures ;  you  will  seek,  by  earnest  study  and  prayer,  to 
have  your  doubts  and  difficulties,  on  whatever  points, 
removed;  you  will  labor  for  a  deeper  insight  into  the 
'  great  mystery  of  godliness '  and  its  related  topics  ;  you 
will  cordially  accept  the  truth  as  it  may  be  made  plain 
to  you ;  and  you  will  be  satisfied  only  with  an  intelligent 
Christianity,  which  adds  to  its  faith  and  virtue  an  ever- 
increasing  hnoidedge  of  the  inspired  word. 

2.  The  service  of  Christ  includes  obedience  to  all  Ids 
commands. 

It  were  superfluous  to  argue  the  question  whether  a 
servant  owes  fealty  to  his  master.  Here  is  the  best  of  all 
Masters,  and  here  are  the  most  favored  of  all  servants — 


262  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

bondmen,  wlio  have  a  nobler  distinction  in  being  called  to 
serve  such  a  Master,  than  they  would  have  had  in  riding 
over  an  earthly  kingdom.  Tlie  service  they  have  pledged 
to  Him  is  unconditional,  without  "  ifs"  or  "  buts."  It  is 
imiversal,  extending  to  all  requirements.  It  is  constant, 
terminating  only  with  life.  It  is  sincere,  emanating  from 
a  loving  heart,  and  animated  by  a  cheerful  spirit. 

3.  No  less  vital,  as  one  of  the  elements  of  this  service, 
is  suhmission  to  all  CJwisfs  allotments. 

There  is  a  familiar  type  of  submission,  the  deference 
which  is  paid  to  authority,  the  homage  which  power 
exacts  of  dependence.  Essentially  servile  in  its  nature, 
it  is  the  poles  away  from  the  sentiment  here  intended. 
Genuine  submission  springs  from  love.  It  does  not  ex- 
clude sensibility  to  trials.  So  far  from  it,  a  gracious  per- 
son— one  who  has  experienced  the  renewing  of  the  Holy 
Ghost — has  all  his  sensibilities  quickened,  and  his  affec- 
tions refined  to  that  degree  that  he  feels  more  keenly 
than  ever  before.  But  he  believes  in  a  Providence.  He 
has  confidence  in  the  wisdom  and  faithfulness  of  his 
Heavenly  Father.  He  sees  God's  hand  as  well  in  his 
trials  as  in  his  mercies.  And,  however  painful  they  may 
be  to  flesh  and  blood,  he  supplicates  the  grace  which  may 
enable  him  to  say,  "Thy  will  be  done  !"  This  is  Chris- 
tian resignation. 

Other  particulars  proper  to  the  exposition  of  the  text 
will  readily  suggest  themselves  to  your  minds;  but  enough 
has  been  said  to  prepare  the  way  for  that  application  of 
the  subject  which  the  occasion  demands. 

There  lies  before  you,  w^e  will  suppose,  your  '■'■Diary  for 
1872;"  all  but  its  first  six  pages  as  yet  untouched  by  tlie 
pen.     You  are  now  asked  to  write  at  the  top  of  each  one 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  263 

of  these  spotless  pages  the  mscription,  "Whose  I  am,  and 
whom  I  serve."  What  does  this  import]  Clearly  that 
you  are  to  carry  into  every  day  the  conviction  that  you  are 
not  your  own,  but  Christ's;  that  He  has  bought  you  with 
a  price  no  less  than  his  own  blood ;  and  that  you  are  to 
serve  Him  with  all  your  powers  of  body  and  mind,  of 
heart  and  soul.  His  right  to  this  service  will  be  con- 
tested. Other  masters  will  claim  your  homage.  His 
rule  is  one  which  does  not  suit  the  world  ;  and  the  world, 
therefore,  frames  statutes  of  its  own.  These  conventional 
codes  vary  indefinitely  in  different  ages  and  countries, 
but  they  are  all  more  or  less  incompatible  with  his  law. 
They  sanction  practices  which  He  would  frown  upon. 
They  confuse  the  elements  of  right  and  wrong ;  and,  for 
the  immutable  principles  of  truth  and  duty,  substitute 
maxims  of  expediency,  which  have  neither  uniformity 
nor  legitimate  authority.  No  man  who  feels  that  he 
may  lawfully  do  whatever  his  neighbors  do,  can  appro- 
priate the  language  of  the  text,  except  through  a  per- 
verted conscience.  The  pressure  from  this  quarter  to  be 
resisted  is  sometimes  very  great.  One  does  not  like  to 
be  singular.  It  is  not  pleasant  to  forego,  for  example,  in 
buying  and  selling,  usages  which  one's  rivals  are  employ- 
ing to  the  enlargement  of  their  profits.  It  is  quite  natural 
to  fall  in  with  the  tone  and  temper  of  the  communfty  or 
fraternity  to  which  we  belong.  Many  an  upright  man 
has  come  by  degrees  to  countenance  the  flagitious  gam- 
bling which  is  the  opprobrium  of  some  stock  exchanges. 
Americans  are  apt  to  be  revolted  when  they  first  witness 
the  systematic  desecration  of  the  Sabbath  in  foreign  capi- 
tals ;  but  a  brief  residence  often  proves  sufficient  to  draw 
them  into    the   noxious  current.     We  take  on   uncon- 


264  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

sciously  the  hues  reflected  from  our  daily  associations, 
and  are  content  with  being-  no  worse  than  our  fel- 
lows. These,  we  persuade  ourselves,  are  better  than  an 
'  over-scrupulous '  moralist  might  concede  ;  but  their  real 
position  is  too  often  that  defined  by  the  disciple  whom 
Jesus  loved : — "  They  are  of  the  world  ;  therefore  speak 
they  of  the  world,  and  the  world  heareth  them."  Yet 
it  is  to  such  hands  the  sceptre  is  quietly  transferred  by 
those  who  had  no  conscious  purpose  of  wresting  it  from 
the  hands  that  baar  the  print  of  the  nails. 

Allegiance  to  Christ  cannot  consort  with  this  subservi- 
ency to  a  world  which  nailed  Him  to  the  tree.  "  No 
man  can  serve  two  masters."  We  profess  to  have  de- 
cided between  them.  If  it  be  in  good  faith  that  we  have 
inscribed  our  daily  journal  with  the  motto,  "  Whom  I 
serve,"  we  must  listen  to  his  voice  only,  not  to  the  clam- 
orous voices  of  the  world,  and  not  even  to  the  voice  of  the 
Church,  unless  we  be  entirely  sure  that  Christ  is  speak- 
ing through  the  Church.  For  is  it  not  too  apparent 
that  the  counsels  of  the  Church,  if  not  as  an  organized 
society,  at  least  of  many  who  use  its  dialect,  and  share  its 
privileges,  are  at  variance  with  his  counsels  (  Every  one 
has  seen  how  the  Church  and*  the  world  have  been  gravi- 
tating towards  each  other  of  late  years, — whether  by  a 
growmg  deflection  of  both  orbits,  or  of  only  one  of  them, 
people  will  decide  for  themselves.  That  the  tendency  of  the 
Church  is  earthward,  that  it  was  so  even  when  Apostles 
were  its  teachers,  is  apparent,  not  simply  from  the  New 
Testament,  and  from  ecclesiastical  history,  but  from  the 
personal  experience  of  believers.  For  the  society  must 
represent  the  individuals  that  compose  it ;  and  every 
Christian  is  painfully  aware  of  the  energy  with  which 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  265 

he  is  ever  drawn  towards  the  thmgs  that  perish  with  the 
using !  Were  it  not  that  these  tendencies  are  counter- 
acted or  modified  by  gracious  influences  from  without, 
what  Christian,  what  Church,  could  escape  final  ship- 
wreck ? 

With  what  reason,  then,  can  any  believer  assume  as 
his  rule  of  duty  the  opinions  or  customs  of  his  brethren, 
unless  he  have  first  verified  them  by  the  Master's  utter- 
ances 1  How  far  your  associates  are  worthy  to  be  im- 
plicitly imitated  you  may  learn  with  sufficient  accuracy  by 
interrogating  your  own  heart.  They  are,  probably,  very 
much  what  you  are,  not  essentially  better  nor  worse.  If  it 
be  right  for  you  to  take  them  as  your  model,  they  must 
have  the  same  warrant  to  take  you  for  theirs.  Are  you 
ready  for  this  X  Do  you  feel  that  it  would  be  wise  on  their 
part  %  Is  it  the  dictate  of  conscience  that  your  brethren 
would  do  well  to  tread  in  your  steps,  especially  in  rela- 
tion to  that  large  class  of  mixed  questions  concerning 
which  consciences  may  diff'er  1  An  Apostle  could  say, 
"Brethren,  he  followers  togetlier  of  ?«e,  and  mark  them 
which  walk,  so  as  ye  have  us  for  an  example."  But  who 
amongst  us  would  venture  to  address  his  brethren  in  this 
strain]  "  One  is  your  Master,  even  Christ."  Here  is  the 
lesson  we  profess  to  have  learned.  And  it  is  clothed  with 
the  highest  possible  significance,  because  it  is  Christ  Him- 
self who  speaks.  If  we  honestly  accept  this  truth,  we 
cannot  put  upon  Him  the  indignity  of  consnlting  our 
fellow-servants  in  preference  to  the  Master.  Let  them 
say  or  do  what  they  please,  right  or  wrong,  wise  or  fool- 
ish. They  are  no  law  to  us.  "  Be  not  ye  the  servants 
of  men."     They  cannot  answer  for  us,  nor  we  for  them. 

18 


266  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

Enough  that  we  have  our  Master,  and  are  responsible  to 
Him  alone. 

Should  it  happen,  then,  in  the  course  of  this  year,  that 
you  are  solicited  to  take  this  or  that  debatable  step 
mainly  upon  the  ground  that  it  has  the  sanction  of  some 
"  good  Christians,"  it  will  be  well  to  recall  our  year-text 
and  say  to  yourself,  "  Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve ! 
What  will  my  Master  have  me  do  V  Happily,  you  can 
consult  Him.  It  is  one  of  our  great  advantages  that  He 
is  always  at  hand.  No  emergency  of  this  sort  can  arise 
that  we  may  not  lay  the  question  before  Him,  with  a 
reasonable  assurance  that  He  will  guide  us  to  the  proper 
conclusion.  With  his  word  in  our  hands,  and  the  Spirit's 
aid  freely  promised,  the  path  will  ordinarily  be  made  so 
plain  that  "  wayfaring  men,  though  fools,  need  not  err 
therein."  Shall  we  not  begin  the  year  with  the  habit  of 
consulting  the  Master  on  all  questions  of  duty  ] 

It  is  no  unusual  custom,  in  well-ordered  families,  for 
servants  to  come  to  the  head  of  the  household  each  morn- 
ing and  receive  instructions  for  the  day.  Doubtless  this 
is  your  own  habit  in  respect  to  your  Master.  But,  per- 
adventure,  it  may  sometimes  be  slighted,  or  the  instruc- 
tions may  be  soon  forgotten.  Suppose  you  go  to  Him. 
reverently  and  trustfully,  and  ask  his  directions  for  the 
new  year.  'Thine  I  am,  O  Lord,  and  Thee  I  serve. 
What  hast  Thou  for  me  to  do  this  year  1  How  can  I 
turn  my  gifts  and  opportunities  to  the  best  account "? 
W^herein  can  I  serve  Thee  most  acceptably  V 

A  petition  like  this,  followed  up  by  correspondent 
daily  petitions,  would,  in  the  course  of  a  twelvemonth, 
save  us  a  world  of  perplexity,  and  simplify  the  work  of 
life  as  much  as  it  would  augment  our  comfort.     It  is  not 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  267 

improbable  that  the  Master  might  answer  our  inquiries 
in  part  by  reminding  us  wherein  we  had  failed  of  our 
duty  in  past  years.  The  era  of  direct  revelation  has  gone 
by.  But  He  still  speaks  to  us  'in  divers  manners;'  and 
one  of  the  books  He  puts  in  our  hands  is  our  own  biog- 
raphy. Very  diverse  are  the  uses  to  be  made  of  it ;  but 
no  one  of  them  is  of  higher  moment  than  the  admoni- 
tions it  supplies  of  our  mistakes  and  sins,  and  the  neces- 
sity of  avoiding  them  in  the  future.  What  they  may 
have  been  we  cannot  specify  for  one  another.  Each  life 
makes  its  own  record.  A  faithful  memory,  aided  by  a 
quickened  conscience,  will  preach  to  you  of  the  past  as 
no  other  preacher  can.  It  will  be  your  wisdom  to  heed 
its  counsels,  even  though  they  come  to  you  in  the  form 
of  reproaches  for  wasted  time  and  neglected  duties. 

In  regard  to  the  particular  sphere  we  are  to  occupy, 
there  are  not  many  amongst  us  to  whom  that  is  an  open 
question.  Providence  has  assigned  us  to  our  positions, 
and  prescribed  our  vocations.  But  it  remains  to  be  de- 
cided in  what  spirit  we  are  to  meet  the  obligations  of  our 
allotted  task.  You  will  have  gone  sometimes  into  a  mill 
where  a  hundred  men  were  engaged  at  the  same  me- 
chanical processes,  and  you  must  have  observed  not  only 
their  different  grades  as  to  aptitude  and  skill,  but  the 
diversity  they  exhibited  in  respect  of  the  diligence  and 
alacrity  with  which  they  plied  their  work.  It  is  not 
enough  that  we  go  through  our  allotted  task,  and  so  com- 
plete the  day's  service,  whether  in  the  factory  or  the  shop, 
the  sick-room  or  the  forum,  the  library  or  the  legislative 
hall,  that  no  human  tongue  may  have  cause  to  upbraid 
us.  The  eye  of  the  '  Great  Taskmaster '  is  upon  us,  and 
if  our  eye  be  upon  Him  also,  it  will  put  us  upon  carry 


268  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

ing  into  our  work  tlie  utmost  energy  we  can  command, 
and  a  serenity  of  temper  that  shall  prove  how  u-iUiiig  a 
service  we  are  paying  Him.  It  is  a  Divine  act,  that  of 
prosecuting  our  ordinary  pursuits  with  an  habitual  and 
grateful  reference  to  his  will.  Those  who  have  learned 
the  lesson  will  attest  that  there  is  nothing  which  aids  so 
effectually  in  smoothing  the  rough  paths  of  toil  and  light- 
ening its  burdens  as  the  feeling  that  all  these  arrange- 
ments are  of  God's  appointment,  and  that  the  myriad 
tribes  of  labor  are  his  servants. 

Nor  are  these  the  limits  of  the  Almighty  domain.  It 
covers  no  less  our  civil  relations.  The  state  is  one  of  his 
institutions.  Your  political  obligations  terminate  upon 
Him,  and  these  are  to  be  as  conscientiously  discharged 
as  are  yoiu-  religious  duties.  Were  this  principle  ade- 
quately recognized  by  Christian  men  generally,  it  would 
produce  a  revolution  in  the  country  more  decisive  and 
more  benign  than  any  which  has  ever  crowned  the  tri- 
umph of  a  political  party.  What  a  reproach  it  is  to  the 
Christianity  of  the  land  that  it  shrinks  so  much  from 
contact  with  the  imlifks  of  the  land,  as  ihough  in  giving 
us  what  we  boast  of  as  "the  best  government  in  the 
world,"  it  Avere  a  matter  of  indifference  to  the  Great 
Supreme  whether  we  took  care  of  it,  or  suffered  it  to 
degenerate  into  anarchy  or  despotism.  What  sort  of 
fealty  is  that  which  is  rendered  to  Christ  when  his  ser- 
vants by  the  thousand  stand  idly  by  and  see  vile  men 
nominated  and  elected  to  important  offices  without  re- 
sisting it]  The  country  looks  aghast  at  the  frightful 
official  corruption  which  has  been  unearthed  of  late.  It 
might  have  been  prevented.  To  a  large  extent  it  would 
have  been  prevented  if  the  religious  men  of  all  parties 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  969 

had  been  true  to  the  motto  inscribed  upon  that  ensign 
which  they  profess  to  carry  high  above  their  party  ban- 
ners, "Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve."  No,  no,  breth- 
ren, you  have  not  been  true  to  your  profession.  All  over 
the  land  Christian  men  have  often  gathered  around  party 
standards  held  by  the  foulest  hands,  while  the  blood- 
stained Laharnm  of  their  glorious  leader  has  been  trailed 
in  the  dust.  It  will  be  one  step  towards  the  redressing 
of  the  wrongs  which  you  may  have  had  some  agency  in 
visiting  not  only  upon  the  commonwealth  but  upon  the 
cause  of  Christ,  if  you  henceforth  discard  the  pestilent 
heresy  that  the  politics  of  the  country  are  a  worthless 
common,  where  the  scum  of  the  populace  are  to  hold 
their  revels  and  plan  their  robberies,  instead  of  a  garden 
to  be  culti-sated  by  the  choicest  hands,  and  seeded  with 
the  finest  of  the  wheat.  The  country  needs  your  help, 
and  has  a  right  to  demand  it.  If  the  offices  it  claims  are 
distasteful  to  you,  remember  who  it  is  that  has  laid  them 
upon  you,  and  consider  what  must  have  been  your  con- 
dition to-day  if  Christ  had  declined  all  offices  that  were 
not  agreeable  to  his  natural  feelings.  To  attempt  to 
divorce  your  religion  from  the  claims  of  citizenship  is  not 
merely  disloyalty  to  your  country,  it  is  perfidy  to  Christ. 
We  pass,  by  a  grateful  transition,  from  the  State  to  the 
Church.  Here  the  inscription  is  too  legible  to  be  hid, 
and  we  meet  it  on  every  side, — "Whose  I  am,  and  wliom 
I  serve  !"  And,  again,  the  inquiry  recurs.  How  am  I  to 
carry  this  sentiment  with  me  into  the  experiences  of  the 
year  I  Manifestly  (for  one  thing)  by  leaving  at  its  thresh- 
old whatever  might  impede  you  in  your  work.  WTien 
you  visit  a  neighbor  through  rain  and  mud,  you  put 
off  your  soiled  coverings  as  you  enter  his  house ;  good 


270  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NE]V  YEAR. 

breeding  and  your  own  comfort  require  it.  We  have 
all  been  on  the  move  for  twelve  months,  with  varying 
skies,  with  ever-shifting  scenes,  with  companions,  friendly, 
hostile,  or  indifferent,  of  every  tone  and  temper,  and  it 
will  not  be  strange  if  we  have  brought  accretions  with 
us  which  should  be  dropped  before  we  go  any  further. 
There  are,  possibly,  some  untoward  habits  that  have  been 
contracted,  some  vicious  appetites  indulged,  some  pre- 
judices nursed,  some  rude  antipathies  paraded,  some 
selfish  aspirations  fostered.  Would  it  not  be  well,  now 
that  the  new  year  is  throwing  open  its  door  to  us,  to  leave 
these  outside  1  They  will  only  be  a  clog  to  us,  and  an 
annoyance  to  others,  if  we  insist  upon  keeping  them. 
Better  to  let  them  drift  away  upon  the  broad  bosom  of 
the  old  year,  which  is  fast  bearing  so  many  hetfei-  things 
out  of  sight.  We  shall  have  thorny  places  to  traverse, 
and  burdens  to  take  up,  and  perils  to  encounter,  and  bat- 
tles to  wage,  before  tMs  year  is  over ;  and  it  behooves 
us  to  get  rid  of  all  possible  incumbrances  at  the  start,  to 
'  lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  which  doth  so  easily 
beset  us,  that  we  may  run  with  patience  the  race  set 
before  us,'  and  'fight  the  good  fight  of  faith,  and  lay 
hold  upon  eternal  life.' 

This  is  preparation  for  work.  For  the  work  itself,  so 
there  be  a  willing  mind,  the  Master  will  show  us  where 
and  how  we  may  serve  Him  to  good  purpose.  His  vine- 
yard is  very  large.  There  is  room  for  all  that  care  to 
labor,  and  there  is  work  for  all.  Our  part  of  the  field 
may  not  be  just  that  which  we  should  prefer.  Our  func- 
tions may  be  less  conspicuous  than  those  of  some  others. 
The  probable  results  may  be  comparatively  moderate. 
To  turn  a  lathe  all  day,  to  drive  the  shuttle,  to  delve 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  271 

in  a  mine,  to  ply  the  needle,  to  plod  througli  the 
monotonous  routine  of  housewifery  day  by  day,  with  the 
bare  necessaries  of  life  to  keep  the  domestic  machinery 
in  motion, — all  this  must  be  trying  enough  to  flesh  and 
blood.  What  wonder  if  the  servants  employed  in  these 
vocations  look  sometimes  with  a  wistful — I  will  not  say 
an  envious — eye,  towards  others,  their  fellow-servants, 
who  are  assigned  to  a  richer  soil,  with  better  implements, 
an  easier  tillage,  and,  prospectively,  a  more  generous 
harvest^  If  you  pause  with  the  outward  and  the  sen- 
sible here,  repining  is  inevitable.  But,'if  you  recall  your 
lesson,  "  Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve,"  you  will  not 
repine.  He  distributes  his  gifts  to  his  servants,  and  sends 
them  to  their  work,  as  He  deems  best.  What  He  expects 
of  them  is,  not  that  they  display  equal  abilities,  or  master 
the  same  acquisitions,  or  attract  the  same  attention,  or 
achieve  the  same  results.  Nothing  of  this.  But  that 
they  be  faithful  each  to  his  ovm  trust.  The  remark  of 
John  Newton  has  been  often  quoted,  that  if  God  should 
send  two  angels  into  the  world,  and  order  one  to  drive  a 
team,  and  the  other  to  rule  a  kingdom,  they  would  be 
equally  satisfied  with  their  respective  positions.  To  be 
"a  servant  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ"  is  distinction 
enough  for  man  or  angel ;  the  day  will  so  declare  it. 
The  proper  antidote  to  despondency  on  the  part  of  the 
toiling  disciple,  and  to  pride  on  the  part  of  his  affluent, 
or  eloquent,  or  eminently  useful,  brother,  lies  in  the  re- 
flection, "Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve." 

It  were  easy  to  adduce  scores  of  arguments  by  way  of 
commending  this  Scripture  to  you  as  your  guide  and 
talisman  for  the  year.  A  single  and  familiar  considera- 
tion must  suffice. 


272  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

Any  year  may  be  our  last, — tliis  year  as  likely  as  any 
other.  And  whenever  death  does  come,  the  only  shield 
against  its  terrors,  and  the  only  solace  for  mourners,  is  to 
be  found  in  the  relations  the  departing  spirit  has  sus- 
tained to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  It  is  a  most  significant 
tribute  which  the  world  pays  to  the  value  of  true  piety, 
that  it  lays  more  stress  upon  the  slight  tokens  a  man 
may  have  furnished  of  even  a  transient  interest  in  re- 
ligion than  upon  all  he  was  or  all  he  did  besides.  It  is 
not  of  a  man's  riches,  or  his  enterprise,  or  his  eloquence, 
or  his  wit,  and  of  a  woman's  beauty,  or  her  accomplish- 
ments, or  the  splendor  of  her  entertainments,  that  we  first 
think  when  they  are  dead  or  dying.  Who  can  depict  the 
remorse  and  dread  upon  a  bed  of  sickness  of  those  faith- 
less disciples  who,  professing  to  be  servants  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  have  given  their  time,  and  money,  and 
strength  to  the  world  that  crucified  Him  !  When  a  pro- 
fessing Christian  of  this  type  is  struck  down  by  a  threat- 
ening illness,  conscience  is  very  apt  to  demand  a  hearing ; 
and  noiD  it  must  and  icill  be  heard.  "Alas,  alas,  I  have 
betrayed  my  Master.  Wearing  his  livery,  I  have  con- 
sorted with  his  foes.  Pledged  to  enlist  other  perishing 
sinners  in  his  cause,  I  have  taught  them,  by  my  example, 
to  regard  Him  as  a  hard  Master.  When  I  first  took  my 
seat  at  his  table  I  supposed  I  had  some  of  the  marks  of 
true  discipleship.  But  these  have  all  been  obliterated 
by  my  career  of  worldliness,  and  how  can  He  forgive 
mel     Mercy,  mercy;  God  have  mercy  upon  my  soul !" 

Is  this  overdrawn  I  Do  you  not  believe  it  is  the  his- 
tory of  countless  death-beds'?  And  is  such  a  death  to 
be  coveted'?  Even  if  you  yourself  might  have  the 
courage  to  dare  it,  what  an  unkindness  to  your  friends 


MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR.  273 

to  oblige  them,  after  you  are  gone,  to  look  with  painful 
scrutiny  through  your  life  and  character,  in  order  to 
glean,  if  possible,  some  scraps  of  evidence  upon  which 
to  found  a  hope  that  you  have  been  saved,  although  'as 
by  fire.'  You  owe  it  to  those  who  love  you  to  spare 
them  this  cruel  trial.  And  if  you  owe  it  to  them,  what 
do  you  not  owe  to  Him  who  submitted  to  the  sharpness 
of  death,  clothed  with  alJ  its  horrors,  in  order  that  you 
and  I  might  die  in  peace  ^. 

You  may  die  in  peace.  Take  this  Scripture,  which  is 
tendered  you  to-day,  "AVhose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve." 
'Bind  it  for  a  sign  upon  your  hands,  and  let  it  be  as 
frontlets  between  your  eyes ;  write  it  upon  the  posts  of 
your  house,  and  upon  your  gates;'  walk  by  the  light  of 
it,  and  rejoice  in  the  liberty  and  strength  which  are  bound 
up  in  it,  an^  you  tvill  die  in  peace.  Nor  this  alone. 
Should  it  please  God  to  put  this  text  into  every  one  of 
our  hearts,  and  keep  alive  its  inspiration  within  us,  what 
a  year  of  blessing  would  this  be  to  our  Church !  The 
indolent  and  indifferent  would  bring  forth  their  buried 
talents  and  become  workers;  and  the  workers  would 
work  with  lighter  hearts.  Those  who  have  loved  their 
money  more  than  they  have  loved  Christ  would  emulate 
the  Ifagi  in  hastening  to  lay  their  treasures  at  His  feet. 
New  energy  would  be  infused  into  the  Sunday-schools, 
the  missionary  schemes,  and  all  the  benevolent  opera- 
tions with  which  we  have  to  do.  In  place  of  the  languor 
which  possibly  may  have  settled  down  upon  us,  the  entire 
Church  would  soon  reveal  the  glow  of  a  healthful  activity, 
and  we  might  expect  to  see  a  blessed  ingathering  into 
the  fold  of  those  who  are  now  far  from  God. 

These,  and  such  as  these,  are  the  results  to  be  reason- 

19 


274  MOTTOES  FOR  THE  NEW  YEAR. 

ably  anticipated,  if,  with  one  heart  and  soul,  and  with  a 
devout  sense  of  our  dependence  upon  the  Divine  Spirit, 
we  accept  it  as  our  motto  for  the  year,  and  faithfully  live 
by  it,  "Whose  I  am,  and  whom  I  serve." 

In  the  spirit  of  this  Scripture,  and  with  all  the  sym- 
pathy of  which  a  pastor's  heart  is  capable,  alike  in  your 
joys  and  in  your  sorrows,  I  wish  you  a  very  happy  New 
Year ! 


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